Catholic School Girl
by Burn Our History
Summary: A disquieting feeling hits Puck when he sees Tina - a girl he has known, and ignored, since childhood - sitting alone one fall afternoon. Rated M for some course language, and mildly sexual situations in later chapters.
1. Cursory Glance

Note: I've been out of the fic game for awhile, and this is my first stab at Glee. Admittedly, it was hard to really find the voices of these characters and I don't know how far I'll go with this fic because of it. All I can hope is that subsequent chapters will be easier, and better, than this one.

As always, I don't own anything other than the words written on the page. Characters, places, etc. belong to the writers of Glee.

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**Catholic School Girl**

**Chapter 1: Cursory Glance**

She looked so different now than she once had.

He remembered dark pigtails that fell just behind her ears, mostly because he had spent so much of his time tearing at them during Sabbath school. Clunky framed glasses had unbalanced her tiny face, the thick lenses leaving her looking perpetually stunned. The knees that peaked from beneath the hems of awkward, homemade skirts had been covered in scrapes and scabs and all of the kids had called her Tina Knobby Knees – a name that Puck had thought himself quite clever for coining at the tender age of 5.

While the skirts – no longer enforced by her mother but by her school's dress code – had stayed the same, the rest had changed so much that it drew his gaze from across the manicured green separating their schools.

She sat alone at a picnic table, her dark hair – now long, and unbraided – lapping at the wind. Her legs were twisted, one over the other, but her posture had missed ladylike just enough to drive Puck's thoughts into a familiar place. A place that he knew a girl like her was unaware she could inspire.

Imagining the soft feel of that bit of exposed thigh under his fingers, however, twisted his insides into an uncomfortable knot.

_I can't think she's hot._

Almost as if she could sense his thoughts, her brown eyes flicked up to meet his green ones. Though the glasses were gone, the eyes were still doe-like and full of bashful surprise when she realized that her glance was caught in his. She looked down as a reflex.

"Scopin' a little Asain delight for Friday night, Puckerman?"

Puck turned to see Azimio, cocky in his swagger, followed by Dave Karofsky and Finn Hudson, both big and loping, coming his way. The grin spanning Azimio's face caused Puck to cringe internally. Azimio was one of those guys who assumed that because they played the same sports, and the same girls, that they were somehow the same, which meant that he thought he knew exactly what Puck was thinking as he looked at Tina.

Had Puck not needed the distraction, he would have ignored the comment all together. "Dunno what you're talking about," he replied, as Finn sat down next to him on the stone steps and the others hovered behind him.

"C'mon, man. I'm almost embarrassed for you the way you're practically panting over that weird looking Asian chick. Why not just run over there, hump her leg, and be done with it?"

Puck shot him a cool look in an attempt to distract himself from looking over at her again. "At least she'd let me get that close, dude. She'd probably Jackie Chan your sack if you tried."

Azimio rolled his eyes, clearly annoyed by the satisfied smirk on Puck's face. Puck knew it was not the insult that had him twisted, but the fact that Puck was right. Even in an all boys school, full of choices for the neighboring girls, Puck was still the king stud. If he wanted, he could walk across the grass and, in less than five minutes, find himself half-naked in the auditorium balcony with one or more of them.

So why was he trying not to stare at _her_?

He glanced to Finn, then back around to Azimio and Karofsky, and noticed that he was not the only one fixated on the forms moving just across the lawn.

Tall, black socks cutting just below the knee. Form fitting white blouses that revealed unmentionables worth more than mentioning. The spacious cardigans spent more time tied neatly around the slight curve of hips. Pony tails, pigtails. And, god, those skirts.

_What wasn't hot about a chick in a Catholic school uniform? _

He found momentary relief in the idea that the fantasy appealed to him, not the individual girl. Any one of the other girls swarming around, the decency of their skirts being compromised by the onslaught of a gusty fall day, were just as tempting, if not more so.

"We should probably get to practice," Finn said dazedly, his eyes still focusing on…whoever they were.

With a playful backhand to his best friend's chest, Puck rose to lead, each of the others following suit.

_Hot Catholic school girls…that's all it is…_


	2. Understanding Misunderstandings

**Catholic School Girl**

**Chapter 2: Understanding Misunderstandings**

The downward snap of Tina's gaze was a reflex, as was the pretense of extreme interest in the papers sitting before her.

Why was Noah Puckerman staring at her?

At first, she thought he had mistaken her for some girl who he'd hooked up with at some point. But no other girl at her school looked like her, and the way he was looking – like he had seen her a thousand times before, but had never really**_ looked_** at her – did not signify the need for placement.

Even though she had known him for many years, it had been so long ago and she could not imagine him remembering any of that. Mostly because there was nothing worth remembering. Their childhood "friendship" consisted of him calling her names and pulling her hair – which was nothing special since he had loved to torment all of the girls in Sabbath school. In fact, the only thing that had changed was the venue and the fact that she was no longer involved. Teasing had transformed into flirting, and many of her classmates, like many of the little girls of Sabbath school, found him irresistible.

Maybe he had not been staring at her at all.

She had hardly noticed the movement around her until his attention had caused her to look around.

There they all were. Skinny and perfect, with their alabaster skin and loose waves in varying shades of sun-kissed auburn and toasted chestnut. Tina had never been overly self-conscious, even though she had known she looked different. But looking around always caused her to face that she was just that. Different. Freaky, as many had called her, with her straight, jet black hair, streaked with hints of blue. Maureen O'Connor, the most perfectly evil of all the queen bees, often called her Morticia. Though her snipes weren't clever, which synced up quite well with Tina's opinion of Maureen in general, they were just enough to make Tina feel like a sore thumb.

The only place she felt normal was in the choir room, or on the stage. There, few people could touch her in talent, and only one – her best friend Mercedes Jones – could surpass her. Her voice was her solace and getting lost in it was something she did at every given opportunity.

But the quiet, "weird looking" girl who could sing did not strike Tina as the type who would register on Noah Puckerman's radar. The pretty, popular girls who were flanking her from both sides were just about his speed.

_So…why me?_

"Girl, you will not believe the kind of day I had. I found out my hamster is pregnant in _biology_ class, and I just started weeping. And that's not even the worst of it. In third period, I…hey, are you even listening to me?"

Tina tore her eyes away from the spot where Puck and his friends had been sitting to see Mercedes straddling the section of cement bench to her right. Tina could not help but smile at her friend's complete lack of modesty, and admired her ability to disregard the looks she was given, or the things that people said about her. Mercedes never let much bother her, and she never let it show when something did. Although Tina would never outright tell her so, she wished she could have the kind of attitude and confidence that Mercedes did. She wished she could care a lot less than she did. She wished things did not get under her skin the way they did.

She wished she was not so hung up on Noah Puckerman's eyes – those strangely appealing hazel eyes – and why they had been aimed in her direction.

"S-sorry," said Tina. "Just a bit d-distracted."

"What were you looking at?" Mercedes asked, squinting against the sun as she looked at the place that had held Tina's attention.

"N-nothing. Just…I think that N-noah P-Puckerman was s-staring at me, but I don't know why he would be," she said, her stutter becoming more pronounced as she watched the shift in her friend's expression.

_She either thinks I'm crazy, or she's disgusted that I care. _

"Why wouldn't he stare? I mean, just because he doesn't have a chance in hell of scoopin' a hot mama like yourself, doesn't mean he can't look, right?" Mercedes finally said.

Again, an easy smile spread across Tina's face. Only Mercedes would think that the roles were reversed, and that Noah Puckerman was not on Tina's level. And only she could make Tina believe that she was absolutely right. That it did not matter whether or not he was looking at her, or someone else, because Noah Puckerman did not impress her like he did other girls. That his crass jokes, and empty compliments, did not impress her the way they did everyone else. That while he was at the top of the social food chain, Tina had never taken anything he said or did seriously.

She shoved her things into her book bag, and looped her arm through her friends. The two girls walked side-by-side to choir practice, Tina only glancing back over her shoulder once.


	3. Lock Down

**Catholic School Girl**

**Chapter 3: Lock Down  
**

As he moved along the quiet hallway, Puck decided that opting him out of religious studies class was probably the best thing his mother had ever done for him.

Catholic school hadn't been her first choice but she had absolutely refused to send him to public school. As she saw it, his behavior was bad enough without help and all the bad influences attended public school. She also had zero intention of home schooling him, since she said that he had his father's work ethic, which meant nothing good. No comparison to his father ever was. Without any Jewish private schools in or anywhere near Lima, St. Sebastian Catholic High School was her last resort.

Upon enrolling him, she had insisted that he be exempt from taking any religion class that would contradict or compromise their rich, cultural heritage. Holding back laughter when he'd heard her say it had bordered on physically painful, since his mom was about as dedicated to being a practicing Jew as he was to being a straight A student. But she had convinced the principal to put him in what they called an "independent study." What, exactly, he was studying during that hour was of no importance to anyone but him…and whichever girl happened to be hanging around that week.

He pushed through a set of double doors that lead outside, and took his time walking across the grass even though it was raining. This, for him, was the best part of Catholic school: no security guards tripping him up, or locking him down. Despite all the rules, he got an hour a day to be completely free. Karofsky had once made some crack about Puck being like a prison inmate, getting his hour in the yard, but Puck ignored him like he always did. Karofsky was just a pissed off guy in general, throwing his weight around like the whole world was against him. Puck had a pretty good idea as to why – because whether he knew it or not, Karosky really was not hiding his preference for guys that well – but he did not much care. All that mattered was he had that time to do whatever he wanted, and if priests and nuns weren't going to stop him, he sure as hell was not going to let Karofsky.

Another set of doors, this time glass, then he was staring down the deserted front hallway of St. Maria Goretti Academy for Girls. The grey sky stifled any light peaking the surrounding windows, and he could not help but be a bit creeped out by the statues mounted on the high up on the walls.

Angels. Dead people. Like the nuns weren't scary enough. If they wanted to dominate through fear, they nailed it.

_Focus. _

He was there for a reason.

After seeing her last week, he could not put Tina out of his mind. Not on Thursday night when he was rounding second with that waitress at Breadstix. And not on Saturday night, when he was getting his 3-way on with those two smokin' hot cheerleaders – one seriously confused blond, and one bitchy, dark-haired Latina – from McKinley High.

All he could think of was the wind catching her hair, and that shy expression. And her thighs. Always those thighs and how they looked in that skirt. How they'd feel wrapped around him.

He didn't do fixated, and was not about to let some girl in a skirt screw with his mojo, especially when he saw them everywhere. He was going to handle the situation, and her, the way that he did every other girl. He could not help but smirk when he thought about how she would probably enjoy it.

It had taken a little leg work – again, not his style but necessary in this case – to find out where she would be during this time of day. He had gone to Finn for help, since his stepbrother was friends with Tina's best friend. Getting the information that way had taken longer than going through Azimio – who knew all the ins and outs of everything, except for maybe Karosky's sexuality – but Puck had saved himself a month's worth of having to listen to Azimio's irritating snickers.

He could hear her voice before he ever walked in the doorway of the choir room, and he could not help but be a little surprised. She was sitting at the piano, softly teasing the right notes into letting her voice take the lead.

He'd never heard her speak so much as a word, so he couldn't understand how the sound that he was hearing – haunting, yet strangely clear and comforting – could come out of her. He had heard the song once or twice before, but did not know the name. It didn't really matter anyway. She could have been singing the alphabet and sounded great.

_No, amazing._

He didn't realize that he had been holding his breath until his chest started to feel tight. It took a gentle shake to remind him that he was not there for a concert. Her being as talented as she was wasn't going to throw him off his game.

"Shouldn't you be in class?"

Tina abruptly stopped playing, to look around and see Noah Puckerman making his way down the stadium steps at the far left of the room. Actually, it was not a walk so much as it was a swagger. He was looking confident, or cocky, like he normally did.

She did not know what he was doing there. Were it any other place, or time of day, she would have assumed he was sneaking around with one of her classmates. She had heard both rumors and firsthand accounts of girls who had met with him in the hidden places of the school, away from the watchful eyes of the sisters. The details were never hard to come by, because girls seemed to be clamoring to brag about their escapades with him, as if he was some kind of badge they all wore proudly. Mercedes had once said it was disgusting the way some of these girls basically whored themselves out to him, just so they could tell everyone that they did. And even though Tina tended to agree with her, she would never have said so out loud.

She was always in the choir room at this time, thus the girls seemed to avoid arranging their clandestine meetings there. Even though none of them seemed ashamed of what they were doing, they could not be sure Tina, as quiet and non-confrontational as she was, would not rat them out had she seen them hooking up there.

"I-I…there's n-no one else here," she said lamely, cheeks starting to burn with embarrassment at her own stammer.

He slid easily onto the piano bench next to her. "Nope, just you and me, Tina. Why? Were you expecting someone to be?"

The grin on his face unnerved her more than hearing her name. even though she couldn't figure out how he knew it. None of her friends knew any of his. He did not live down the street from her. They didn't even live in the same neighborhood. His mom was not friends with hers, and she had not been to temple since the last time he had spoken to her. There was only one way for him to know it, but…

…there was no way he could remember. No way that a guy like him would.

_Or would he?_

"N-No. I wasn't expecting anyone at all. I have an independent study in music here at same t-time every day."

"Let me guess..your mom didn't want you taking religion?" he scoffed, amused at the idea that both of their mothers might be a little crazy.

"Actually, she's less t-thrilled about the music t-than she is about religion. She t-thinks it's a waste of t-time."

Puck wondered if her mother had actually ever heard her sing. No one who had would think that her doing it was a waste of time. "Moms can be like that sometimes," he said casually as he because playing a simple song on the piano.

"You play?" Tina said, one eyebrow raised in disbelief.

"Since I was 5. But let's keep that our secret." He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye just in time to see her bowed nod. She was not looking at him, which made it hard for him to work his best assets – his face and charm. He needed to speed this whole process up; forty-five minutes never lasted as long as he wanted it too and he was not walking away from this room with this girl still causing his insides to churn.

Without warning, his hand landed just above her knee, and the objection was nothing more than jumbled sounds bouncy around at the back of Tina's throat.

_Is he actually trying to… _

She really could not wrap her head around what was happening. No boy had ever touched her, much less where he was, and even though it was not the most scandalous thing that he could be doing, she knew his reputation. Whatever this was, it would not stop at a touch. She didn't know why her, but she knew she needed to collect herself and stop it.

"D-do you know who St. Maria Goretti is?" she blurted out as his fingers drifted lightly over her skin, creeping higher. With his face as close to hers as it could be she felt like she was practically screaming at him.

He backed off a bit, though he could still feel the warmth of her breath, which was coming in sharp, uneven bursts. "I'm a Jew, what do you think?"

"She's the p-patron saint of young women," she offered, her voice becoming barely audible. She tried to steady her hand, to seem bold, as she reached to move his off her leg. "And of p-purity." She stood up and made a b-line for the door.

He chuckled. "Yeah, that's what this school is known for."

She stopped, and turned, her face showing clearly for the first time. She looked angry, like he had just insulted her personally. "You d-don't really help with that cause, d-do you?"

"Look, I am trying to have some fun here. So what the hell's _your_ problem? Do you not like guys or something?"

"Oh right. Every girl who d-doesn't want you to feel them up has to be a lesbian." Tina surprised herself. She hadn't known she was capable of being such a…bitch. But maybe it is what she had to do. "You d-don't even know me! And I d-don't want to know you! So why would I d-do anything with you?" she snapped.

Normally, he would shoot back something about her being weird, then lucky because a guy like him paid her any attention. But all he could manage was, "Fine, whatever. Go," as he watched her practically flee the room.

_What the hell happened?_

It was suppose to be easy. He was supposed to smile, work her in all the right ways, and then what always happened with these girls would happen. How much, and how far, was different from girl to girl, but there always something. He never got shot down.

But it wasn't that rejection that stuck with him as he made his way out of the choir room, then the building. It was her words. They had done more than just bruise his ego.

They got to him. They stung.

No girl had ever made him feel much of anything, especially not bad. In fact, the only female to make him feel low was his mom, and he always figured that was, well, just her way. He didn't think this was even possible for anyone else to make him feel like…like such a loser.

He settled into the driver's seat of his car, his head weighing heavily against the rest.

Now, not only was she not out of his system, but she had managed to sink herself deeper into his thoughts by basically handing him his own ass.

He reached for the volume knob on his stereo. Normally, the epic wail of Hendrix and his axe could take Puck out of any headspace. But as he sat there, Puck's thoughts were stuck.

Still.

_Maybe Karosky was right._


	4. Wanting It

**Catholic School Girl**

**Chapter 4: Wanting It**

_His lips felt heavy, and thick, even though their touch was barely discernable. Almost as if they weren't even pressing back against hers. When they parted ever so slightly, they released a strange sweetness against hers. It was not sickening, or sugary. Maybe an apple he'd eaten with his lunch. Maybe a stick of Juicy Fruit he had been chewing. It didn't really matter. It just tasted amazing. His teeth grazed her bottom lip, and before she knew it, a sound had escaped her. _

"Miss Cohen-Chang?"

Tina's eyes flew open at the sound of harsh disapproval in Sister Mary Theresa's tone. The nun was standing over her, her eyes critical, as if Tina had done something not only wrong, but completely inappropriate. "What?" was all that Tina could manage.

"You sounded like you were groaning. Are you feeling ill, or are my lessons not up to your standard of interest?"

Every set of eyes in the room were now on Tina, who had quickly drawn her hand away from her mouth. Had she been…stroking her bottom lip?

_Oh Jesus._

"N-no, Sister. I was…I just…I'm sorry for disrupting class," she hastily apologized, hoping that it would cause the sister to move on and detract the attention away from her.

Sister Mary Theresa held the scornful look for a moment longer than continued on discussing the origins of the position of Pope.

Tina slumped back into her chair, facing burning as she knew that the sister was not the only one in the room who had noticed her practically fondling her own mouth. She could hear Maureen O'Connor and Jessica Grant snickering from the back corner of the room, and it caused her to twist her finger nervously in her lap. She bowed her head a bit so that her hair would fall over both sides of her face, hiding it.

_Could this week get any worse?_

Ever since the incident in the choir room, she had been walking around, feeling anxious. She had never felt so unsure of herself, or of her own feelings.

Despite the lingering, everyday insecurities she had, Tina considered herself a girl who knew her own mind, who knew what she wanted.

She wanted to be creative. Maybe she wanted to perform and have people see her and acknowledge her talent. Especially her mom. She wanted her to see that music was not a waste. At least not for her.

She wanted to stop stuttering, or at least not care when she did it. She wanted all the things she said to carry, like the words did when she sang.

She wanted to go some place that wasn't Lima. Since she was little she had wanted that. Wanted to be Dorothy, a girl who flew away and saw a whole new world.

And as much as she wanted to be liked, and loved in some cases, she wanted to be more than someone who "belonged" to someone else.

More than all that, though, she wanted to be someone she could respect.

And she did not like that she felt like, now, she wasn't. All because of Noah Puckerman.

It wasn't just because he burned through girls like they were nothing to him. A lot of guys were that way, or at least that is what every woman in her family told her as often as possible. "Only after one thing," they always said.

It was that he was so into himself that he thought it was okay to be that way. He thought it was okay to go around assuming that everyone wanted him, and that he could just do whatever he wanted. He was…mean. A bully. On more than one occasion, she had seen him and a group of his friends tossing some of the smaller, weaker freshman into the dumpster behind his school. He made the lives of so many people living hell without a second thought. Had he been a girl, Tina probably would have hated him, like she did Maureen.

The fact that she was thinking about him, about kissing him, in the middle of class made her feel a little ill. Like she was a traitor.

Tina had not noticed the bell ring, and hadn't realized class was over until she heard the Sister's voice again. "Now, remember, there will be a test on this material on Tuesday of next week. There will be an essay question, so I suggest that you use your weekend to study."

She gathered her things slowly, and then made her way to the flow of outgoing traffic. As she made her way from the class to the parking lot, she kept reminding herself that it was the weekend and that she was about to put this nightmare of a week far out of her mind.

"So, Morticia, I have a question. Were you going to finger blast yourself in front of the whole class, because you looked like you were revving up for it?"

Tina kept her eyes on the parking lot, in an attempt to ignore Maureen's question as the pretty blond came up next to her.

"Seriously, hasn't anyone ever taught you that it's tacky to feel yourself up in public?"

Tina wanted to laugh, seeing as she had seen Maureen felt up more times in public than she could count.

"I mean, god, who were you thinking about that got you that bothered anyway? It can't be anyone real because who would want to do anything like that with you..."

"Hey, Mo…"

Both girls looked over Maureen's shoulder to see Noah Puckerman, who had appeared out of nowhere.

_Weekend officially ruined._

"Hey Puck. What's up?" Maureen's smile, which was more maniacal than anything, made Tina cringe."

"Actually, Finn wanted to talk to you. He was in the gym last time I saw him, so you might want to catch him before he leaves."

Maureen was gone before he had finished talking, practically running to find her perfect, popular football playing prince.

After they watched her go, Puck turned to Tina, a grin on his face. "Finn didn't really want to talk to her."

Tina looked at him skeptically, "Why tell her that, then?"

He shrugged. "She's a bitch."

Tina couldn't disagree with that but it really did not explain anything. In fact, it just reaffirmed to her opinion of him. It was common knowledge that he had hooked up with her a bunch of times. Yet here he was bad-mouthing her.

_How could I like someone like that?_

"And…it sounded like you needed a save," he said sheepishly. His hands were jammed deep in his pockets and his posture was one she had never seen him in before. He looked almost childish. Or…nervous. Tina could not tell which. "I heard part of what she said."

She showed no emotion, though she was working hard not to blush. "I was fine."

"Yeah. It looked like you ignoring her was working out really well."

Before Tina could say anything, she heard , "Hey girl, ready to go?" Without uttering a word, she walked towards Mercedes, then followed her to her car. She did not look back this time. She did not give him a second thought.

"So what's this I heard about you in religious studies class?" Mercedes asked as the two settled into the front seat, tossing their book bags careless in the back, a place where they would likely stay until Monday morning.

Tina pulled the seatbelt over her shoulder. "N-nothing really. I just…if I tell you something, p-promise you won't laugh, or think I'm being stupid."

Mercedes looked at her over the top of her designer sunglasses, giving Tina an "are you serious" look.

Tina sighed. "I was thinking about N-noah P-puckerman and…his lips. What it would feel like to kiss him."

"Why would you be thinking about that? Especially after he tried to grope you in the choir room?" Mercedes asked, sounding surprised.

"I d-don't know. All I know is I was thinking about it, and I made a…sound. Like a groan or something. And I was…touching my bottom lip without realizing it. So Sister Mary Theresa said something and I was mortified."

Mercedes looked straight ahead as she drove. "Honestly, I'm more worried about this weird thing you have for Puck than some nun embarrassing you. Especially since you know what kind of guy he is."

Tina did not like her friend's tone. She knew she meant now offense but she felt as if Mercedes was treating her as if she were naïve. "Of course I know. And why is it so weird for me to actually want someone? Someone who has been paying attention to me, who's gone out of his way to track me down. Maybe he is a jerk, but he got Maureen off my back just now. That's why he was standing by me. So maybe…maybe he likes me."

Mercedes was quiet until she pulled up in front of Tina's house. "Look. You know that I support you. And if you like someone, great. But don't fool yourself into thinking that Puck is something he isn't." She looked over at her friend. "For every girl who brags, we both know there's another one who wanted him to like her, but all she got was hurt. I don't want that to be you, T.C."

She knew Mercedes was right. She knew that her defense had come from being upset, and confused. And the fact that she was making a defense only complicated everything more. "I d-don't want to be one of those girls," she said quietly.

_Maybe I just want to believe I wouldn't be. _

She could not say it out loud, because even though she was thinking it, she could not admit to herself that it was one more thing that she wanted.

Mercedes smiled, and reached for Tina's hand. "C'mon. Let's go inside, watch bad movies, and forget all about the crazy."

Tina squeezed her friend's hand, and forced a smile.

_Easier said than done. _


	5. There's Only You Tonight&You Look Happy

**Note:** There is some…course language, I guess you would call it, in this chapter. I tried to use it sparingly, and it is all in context, so trust me when I say including was not meant to offend to any individual, or group of individuals.

Also, I am going to preface this chapter by saying I love Puck/Mercedes, so please do not mistake what you read for hate/bashing.

* * *

**Catholic School Girl**

**Chapter 5: There's Only You Tonight & You Look Happy to Meet Me.**

He was standing in front of a drama club sign-up sheet.

_This could kill my rep for sure._

And all for what?

Puck knew the whole situation had gotten way out of control the minute he came to her rescue in the parking lot two weeks ago.

Now, here he was, willing to give up the easy days of being a stud, and having all the girls he wanted, to be called "completely queer" by his friends for one girl who wanted nothing to do with him.

He couldn't help it. He liked her. He still was not sure why, but he knew his interest wasn't the dump and ditch kind anymore. He didn't want most girls around long term, especially if they weren't at least partially naked. Her, though, he wanted to…he wanted to talk to.

_A lot._

This play thing, though, could completely backfire, and he knew it. Signing up was as likely to make her hate him more as it was to make her see he wasn't so bad, But the only way to get close enough to her to figure out which it would be to take the plunge..

He inhaled deeply as he scratched his name on the sheet.

* * *

Usually it was her mouth that screwed up letters but she was pretty sure her eyes were taking on the role this time. Or maybe it was her brain, because she could not understand the words in front of her.

There was no way that Noah Puckerman had signed up to try out for a school musical.

Only a handful of the St. Sebastian boys ever signed up for the school plays, even when their school was hosting them. Usually, the schools had to open up auditions to kids who went to McKinley. That was how she and Mercedes had befriended Kurt Hummel, Artie Abrams, Mike Chang, and Sam Evans. It was a perfect arrangement. The male parts in productions, whether they were big or small, got filled and the boys got to do what they loved - sing, and in Mike's case dance - without the stigma of being drama geeks at their own school.

_Getting to date all the drama girls probably didn't hurt either._

Tina smiled at the thought of both Artie and Mike Chang asking her out at some point during the cycles of auditions, rehearsals, and shows over the last two years. She had even dated Artie for a short time, only to break up with him out of fear that the things her mother said about him being a wheelchair in his absence would end up slipping when he was actually around.

It had been a heartbreaking for her. Artie was sweet, and despite his tendency to forget to call her when he was gaming on the weekends, he had been a good boyfriend. She'd really liked him and had thought about what being in love with him would have felt like more than once. When she told him they couldn't be together, he had looked so confused, and so hurt. Like he did not know what he did wrong. The fact that he'd accepted it and hadn't held a grudge only made it worse, and it took her a few months to not feel completely awful when she was around him.

That situation was the only reason she said no to Mike when he had asked. Yes, he was Asian, and that would have scored huge points with her mom, but he wanted to dance for a living. That was worse than being handicapped in Mrs. Cohen-Chang's book. "No career potential," she would have said, and Tina wanted to spare Mike the humiliation of it, and to spare herself of another agonizing break-up.

So they were all just friends. Really good friends. In fact, she was almost as close to Mike and Artie as she was to Mercedes. She could go to them with any problem, and they would help.

If Noah Puckerman approached her during try-outs, and she asked them to, they would be standing guard close by, waiting to cut him off at the knees. Not that either of them could take him physically, but she was pretty sure not even he was enough of a jerk to go after a kid in wheelchair.

_Or would he?_

She sighed, exasperated.

She had spent the past two weeks trying to reason with herself. She had tried to recall all the feelings of loathing – both for him and for herself – she had felt that day in the choir room, and in religions studies class not long after. It was becoming more difficult to hate herself for this, though, because all the little, sneaking truths would present counters to her logic. And if she was being honest with herself, being conflicted about Noah Puckerman made her feel…

_This feeling._

It was like the elusive endnote of _Tonight_.

She had been singing the song non-stop since it was going to be her audition piece. Each time she came to the end, she tried to make that last note sound right. But it never did to her. It was just beyond her reach, and endlessly annoying. Still, she wanted it so badly that she was willing to give something away with every no, just so she could come back for another chance at yes.

She gave his name one last glance, and began to hum unevenly as she walked down the hall.

Azimio and Karofsky could not stop laughing, and Finn was barely holding it in. Puck could tell by the dopey look on his face.

* * *

He had anticipated this, and already come up with a plausible reason for wanting to do something it.

"Look, chicks are into all that sensitive guy stuff, like the singing and the romance. Playing some lame ass Romeo in a play who does all that stuff is a guaranteed panty dropper," he said cooly. "Besides, think of all the cast off pussy you guys are going to get when I nab this."

The laughter stopped, all eyes were locked on him.

_Guys are always so much easier than girls._

"Thought that would get your attention," he said with a smirk. "I could have all those sexy little drama geeks, willing to do pretty much anything, to myself, but being the good friend that I am, I'll spread the love around. So instead of calling me a homo," he glared pointedly at Karofsky, whose teeth had snapped into a clench hard enough to crack his caps, "You punks should grateful."

He stood up and slung his book bag over his shoulder as he heard Finn mumble something like, "thanks man." He didn't bother with an exit greeting. He just walked across the lawn, like he did every day, and into St. Maria's like it was no big thing. He had been tempted to turn around and check out their faces, but he knew what envious morons looked like since he hung out with them pretty much every day.

Why he still hung out with them was simple: every alpha needed a pack. In this case, his "boys." He already looked good, but they made him look better. When he had something to say, they all listened and treated it like it was gospel. Sure, they gave him crap, but he always gave it back better.

There were times when he wished they were on his level, because it always gets lonely at the top, but followers were always so much better than friends.

He rounded the corner of the hallway that led to the auditorium and found himself practically tripping over a wheelchair.

"Whoa!"

Puck pulled himself back, and found himself looking down and a kid in a sweater vest, and glasses. "Sorry, dude. Didn't see you there."

"Most people can't miss me." He looked away from Puck to wink at two girls hurrying towards the auditorium. Each of them smiled back. "But s'all good, yo. I'm Artie." He extended his arm towards Puck, his balled up fist expectant.

Puck couldn't help but like this kid, even though he never really liked anyone. Even in a wheelchair, he could tell Artie had mad swag and didn't have a problem withpeople knowing it. That was instant respect in Puck's book. "Puck," he offered as he bumped Artie's fist.

"You must go to the boy's school next door," Artie said as he wheeled himself along the same path as the passing girl had taken. "I bet it's like Christmas everyday of the year seeing all these girls, in all those skirts."

Puck chuckled. "It's not so bad. So what are you doing here man? Your girlfriend go here or something?"

"No girlfriend. Me and a couple of other guys from McKinley always sign-up to do plays here because guys from your school never want to. We're also friends with a couple of girls who go here."

Puck wanted to ask who, but he did not want to seem to eager, so he left it at, "Cool, man," and simply sat down in one of the stadium seats next to the space designated for wheelchair space. Artie introduced him to the guys sitting in front of them. Sam Evans, a blonde, had the biggest mouth Puck had ever seen, and Puck was tempted to ask how many tennis balls he could fit in there. Mike was a tallAsian kid who didn't say much.

"We like to call him 'other Asian,' " quipped Sam, nodding towards Mike.

"Why?" Puck asked.

Almost as if on cue, Tina appeared, her friend Mercedes in tow. "Because she's our number one Asian," Artie said as she reached down to hug him."

"Yeah. Even though I was around first," Mike interjected.

"Yes, but she has the skirt, and the legs," teased Sam as Mercedes sat down next to him, his arm slipping around her shoulders casually. "That makes her number one Asian by default."

Puck's mouth went a little dry as Tina looked down at him and said, "Would you mind if I sat n-next to Artie?"

He didn't even answer, just moved.

_Like an obedient puppy._

He was glad that no one around them was really paying attention. It was such a small thing, but Puck being seen doing something nice would have some kind of weird, high school ripple effect, and he would be hearing it in the morning. He could explain away being there. Acting whipped was a different story.

"You guys know Puck, right?" said Artie, directing the attention of both girls in Puck's direction.

"Yeah, we know him," said Mercedes, no hint of love lost in her voice. "What we don't know is why he's here."

Puck was not a fan of calling girls"bitches," mostly because his Nana told him it was never okay to call girls that, just like it was never okay to slug them. He was sure that his Nana would make an exception in for Mercedes, but he wasn't going to look like the bad guy here. "The sign-up sheet said you needed guys. Here I am," he said simply.

She was shooting eye daggers, but her disgruntled silence was its own reward.

"What are you going to sing," Tina asked.

That he had not thought of, and now that he was …he was nervous. Not because he wasn't prepared but because he would be singing in front of her. He knew he was good, but the question was would she think so. "Hadn't really thought about it." He heard Mercedes give an "he can't be serious" sounding snort of disapproval, which caused him to roll his eyes before looking at Tina, "Got any suggestions?"

For the first time, her eyes met his straight on and, strangely, it made her feel like she was in control. Like she could tell him to sing Itsy Bitsy Spider and he might just get up there and do it. "You could sing a song from a musical. D-do you know any?"

He knew that he probably shouldn't think so, because it wasn't something she asked for, but he found the stutter kind of cute. It was almost like listening to the same person speak a different language. Or speak with an accent. He would never tell her that, because not even he was that offensive, but part of him wanted to tell her not to worry about it because he had seen her blush once or twice before when she tripped certain sounds – he had noticed that N's and D's were kind of tough for her. She wasn't blushing today though andhe kind of missed it because she looked …pretty when her cheeks were rosy like that.

He had to stop thinking these things before he started to feel like a complete schmuck. "Not really. I'm more of a rock and roll, jazz kind of guy. I don't think the sisters would be down with that. Besides, I can't rock out without my axe."

"You play?" said Sam, who was interested despite the fact that Mercedes glare was now on him.

Puck nodded. "Yeah man. You?"

Sam reached down and lifted up what turned out to be a guitar case. "Yeah. We should hangout sometime and just jam."

"I'm down whenever you are, man." The smile on Sam's face said it all.

It felt weird to Puck to be making friends with these guys. Normally, these were the kinds of guys who ended up dumpster surfing on Wednesday afternoons, courtesy of he and his boys. But they were kind of on his level, and they liked the things he liked. They were a little more into this drama thing than he was but it wasn't like they were over the top about it.

"Noah Puckerman," came the sound of his voice.

When he looked up, he saw probably the only young nun who taught at St. Maria's holding a clipboard, looking in his direction. He couldn't help but wonder why she was a nun at all. She was too hot to be a nun, which was a bit distracting when he thought about all that could be under that shapeless, black, floor length dress. He wished that she could dress more like Maria in the beginning of the Sound of Music.

Then it hit him. A song he could sing.

"Yeah, here," he said in the nun's direction, then leaned over to Sam and asked, "Hey man, do you mind if I borrow that? I know a dude's guitar is like his baby but I'll be careful."

Sam did not hesitate to hand it over – and as Puck got up on stage, all eyes were on him. He only cared about one pair, though, as he looked back towards where had been sitting. There they were, and they seemed to be questioning, like she couldn't actually believe he was going to do it.

"So, Mr. Puckerman, what will you be singing for us today?"

"Uhm, I'm going to sing Edelwiess from the Sound of Music."

This seemed to please the Sister, and a whole group of girls sitting off to the right seemed a little star struck at the idea that he was holding a guitar. He could probably just keep on standing there and those girls would swoon. But it was Tina who he wanted to impress, so when he was given the okay to begin, he looked directly at her as began to pluck the tune.

It was unreal to Tina that he hsf chosen that song, and that he knew how to play it on the guitar. It made her wonder about the secret life of Noah Puckerman. Where had he learned to play the guitar, and had he sat on his bed, playing this song a million times before, trying to get it just right like she had done with _Tonight_. How did he even know about The Sound of Music? Did his mom watch it with him when he was little? There was so much she didn't know, and it made her question everything that she did more than she already was.

She tried to keep herself focused on the song, and his voice. It was like no version of _Edelwiess_ she had ever heard before. It was no where near typical of the Bill Lee version in the film. It was still a lullaby, yet it was a little gritty, and a little bluesy, like there was a moan stuck at the back of his throat. She could almost feel that part of Puck that obviously loved to sing, and to play, touching her with words she had heard a hundred times or more. It was like he owned those words, and that sound. When he looked at her while he sang, she almost felt like he could own her if she would let him.

She would never be able to hear that song the same way again. Or look at him without feeling what she was in that moment.

It was over before she wanted it to be. She heard clapping, and excited whispers from across the auditorium. She was not the only one in the Noah Puckerman fan club. And she wondered if she would ever be.

* * *

"So I'll give you a text this weekend, maybe we can hang?" Sam said, as he punched Puck's number into his phone.

Puck nodded, and watched Sam walk with Mercedes over to her car, open the door for her and kiss her in the cheek as she got in.

"How did _that _happen?" he blurted out when it was just him, Artie, and Tina left standing at the edge of the parking lot. "I mean he just doesn't seem like the type of dude that can handle a chick like that."

Artie chuckled. "He can't. But that's kind of the point. Sam is eager to please, and Mercedes likes it that way."

"You make it sound like she d-doesn't like him at all. That she just likes that he d-does what she wants," said Tina, a tone a bit snappish in defense of her friend. The dirty look on her face made Puck happy that _he_ hadn't said it.

"Hey, you know I love Mercedes. But girl is a diva, and she likes having her way. Sam gives that to her."

Before Tina had a chance to argue, a black sedan pulled up directly in front of them, the middle-aged Asian man smiling at her. "That's my dad," she said. She walked over to the passenger side door.

"Hey, Tina."

She looked back this time.

"Your song was really good," Puck said, feeling lame that he couldn't do any better than that. It seemed evident that she felt the same way as she half smiled and got into the car.

"You liiiike her," Artie teased.

Puck watched as the last trace of her dad's bumper disappeared.. "What? No I don't."

"You do. And the way she was watching you sing up there, pretty sure she likes you too. "

_I'm pretty sure she hates me._

"Whatever. You need a ride or something?"

"Nah, that's my dad up there." He pointed to a beat up looking silver van scooting towards them. "But thanks anyway." Again, he extended a fist to Puck and, again, Puck returned the gesture. "And, as one of her best friends, and former boyfriends, I know her pretty well. Even if she doesn't seem like it, she's into you. Just go for it. What's the worst that could happen?"

As Puck drove home, he thought about it.

What _was _the worst that could happen?

She had already shot him down a few times, and made him feel like a complete tool. What could be worse than that, really?

He had already done the play try-out, which could have knocked anyone else off the social ladder completely, and had come out looking golden.

Why not just take Artie's advice?

_Just go for it._


	6. The P in Puck

**Catholic School Girl**

**Chapter 6: The "P" in Puck  
**

She drummed her fingers on the desktop.

It was Friday night, and Tina was at home, sitting in front of her computer.

Normally, she would've been at Mercedes' house, or Mercedes would've come to hers. But ever since Mercedes and Sam had become more serious, and were actually calling each other boyfriend and girlfriend, Tina found that she was spending more of her evenings alone.

She wasn't angry about it. Mercedes had wasted a lot of time going out with a bunch of different guys who were all wrong for her. Yet it was Sam, the guy who had been in front of her all along, that Mercedes finally honed in on as the right one. Even though it had all been a little too cheesy, romantic comedy for her taste, Tina was happy for her friends.

She would just have to find other ways to fill her time.

"Tina?" came a soft voice through her bedroom door. "Honey, can I come in?"

Her mom.

She sighed heavily, since nothing good ever came from the little heart-to-hearts they had when her mom came in her room. It always turned into a poorly disguised lecture. Shutting her mother out, though, only prolonged the inevitable.

"Yes, mom, of course."

_Is it wrong to be envious of your own mother?_

She was tall, and perfectly thin. In fact, Tina was sure that at no point in her life had her mother weighed more than she did. Her hair was long, and thick, with just enough wave to make her look ethereal when she laughed. When she was young, she had done and won dozens of talent shows and pageants, which Tina only knew because of the obvious disappointment that her mother showed when Tina took no interest in doing them herself. Tina didn't understand how her mom found no value in the arts, yet she felt that parading around on a stage in an evening gown, answering mindless questions about the perfect date would be, was worthwhile.

They looked nothing alike and none of their interests were the same. Tina often wondered how they could share DNA at all. If it weren't for her father, and their resemblance, she could have sworn she was adopted.

"So," Mrs. Cohen-Chang said as she sat down on the edge of Tina's bed, "No Mercedes tonight?"

"She's out with Sam," was all Tina was willing to offer. With her mom, it was always to give as little information as possible.

"Well, that is nice. That she has a boyfriend now, I mean. Maybe he has some nice friends that they could set you up with?"

"Artie is one of Sam's friends."

Her mom winced a bit, noticing the obvious snipe that Tina was making, though her tone had remained neutral. She tried to cover it by brushing her bangs from her face. "How has school been going?"

"Everything is good at school. P-play try-outs were this week and I think I have a good shot at the lead p-part."

Most mothers would have looked pleased, or maybe even a little proud at this news. Mrs. Cohen-Chang, though, had to force a half smile. "Your father mentioned you were doing another one of those. But he didn't say anything about a main, speaking role. That will be quite the challenge, don't you think?"

Tina knew exactly what her mother was getting at with the word "challenge." She may as well have told Tina that a female lead would be too hard for someone with a stutter like hers. She wanted to glare angrily at her mother, or yell that she knew exactly how "challenging" it would be. That she had thought of that before she decided to audition. That she wasn't the complete idiot that her mother seemed to think she was.

All she could manage, though, was a quiet, "I know."

Before her mom could say anything else, Tina's cellphone rang. She did not recognize the number, but talking to anyone other than her mom at the moment was preferable. "Hello?"

"Hey…Tina?"

Except for maybe Noah Puckerman.

_How does he have my number? _

Artie. Or Sam. She didn't know whether to be pissed at whichever one it was who had sold her out, or to thank them from possibly saving her from talking to her mom.

"Oh, hi," she said, turning away from her mom's quizzical look.

"So, what's up?" he asked, in a voice that made her think he had no idea why he was calling her.

"Uhm, nothing much. Just sitting here, talking to my mom."

"Harsh," he said, and after a long, awkward silence, "So, listen, do you want to hang out or something?"

_Is he feeling alright?_

"With you? Right now?" she questioned.

"Yeah. We could go see a movie or something. Or I could just come over and…"

"N-No. Let's just…give me a second okay." She pressed the phone against her chest, and turned back to her mom. "Would it be okay if I went to the movie with Sam and Mercedes?"

She didn't know why she was lying. Her mother wouldn't have said no if she had asked to go to the movies with a boy. She probably would have been over the moon. Tina was in no mood to introduce or explain Noah Puckerman to her mom, especially since she had yet to figure him out for herself.

"Honey, won't you feel like a third wheel on their date?"

"Can I go or n-not?" she snapped.

Her mom took a long moment. "Yes, yes, of course you can go. Just be back by 12, okay?"

Tina nodded, placing the phone to her ear. "Pick me up in ten minutes."

* * *

He pulled up alongside the curb, in front of a house that wasn't hers.

He only knew this because when he called her back – she'd hung up on him after she barked at him to come get her – she told him to park a few houses down from hers. He didn't ask why, mostly because he was in no mood to meet anyone's parents. Especially if this wasn't a date. And by his definition of what a date was, this definitely wasn't going to be one.

_Why am I doing this?_

It wasn't even about the possible rejection at this point. He just wasn't too keen on the idea of it being Friday night and him not getting laid. It was almost like breaking a longstanding tradition.

When he saw her walking toward the car, though, he thought it might be a willingly made sacrifice. It was almost weird seeing her in anything other than the uniform, but he was pleasantly surprised at how good she looked in a pair of jeans. Sam had been right about her legs. Even all covered up, they were amazing. Her whole body was.

"Hi," she said as she sat down in his front passenger's seat.

_No comments about her legs or her ass. You want her to like you, remember._

"Hey," he replied, then, "You look good."

She tried to hide how surprised she was that he had said it. "This is what I always where when I'm not in school."

"Oh."

They sat there, in silence, for what seemed like forever.

For Puck, this was always so much easier when the girls weren't actually people. When they meant nothing, there was no chance that he could screw it up. He could go for what he wanted without feeling like a jackass, because those girls didn't care. They just liked to be saying they had a turn with him.

He hadn't thought about it much, but when he did, it bothered him a little. Everyone said that he used these girls and then threw them away. That he was a "bad guy." But weren't a lot of these girls using him too, especially when they turned around and bragged about it to their friends?

"So…what d-do you want to d-do?" Tina asked. "Because, I'm n-not in the mood for a movie."

"Me either," said Puck. "Are you hungry? We could go get something to eat."

"I just ate d-dinner awhile ago, but if you want to eat, we can."

"Not really hungry myself."

Again, awkward silence. This time, though, it didn't last as long.

"Wait. I have the perfect idea," Puck blurted out as he put the car in drive.

Tina did not ask where they were going until the hit a dirt road that was at least 20 minutes outside of Lima.

"Okay, this is going to sound totally lame. But…there's this farm out here that does hayrides. Some of them are haunted and some are just plain hayrides. I figure, we can do that, and then get some warm apple cider after."

She didn't think it was lame at all. In fact, she thought it was kind of cool. She had never been on a hayride before. "We should do the haunted one."

When he glanced over at her, she was smiling. He couldn't help but do the same. "Cool."

* * *

"Need a hand?" Puck asked, offering her his as she attempted to climb onto the hay-covered wagon bed. She could have done it on her own but his hand was already out.

The ride was filling up, so everyone had to squeeze together closely. When she felt his thigh touch hers and his arm slip behind, but not entirely around, her, she wondered if he had known about this place because he had brought girls here before. Having a jam-packed wagon, and barely any room to spread out, was the perfect opportunity for him to get close enough to a girl to…do whatever he wanted to do. Especially on the haunted ride that they were about to go on. Girls probably used the being scared by some fake zombies jumping out of trees to jump onto Puck.

It had all sounded so innocent in the car, and now she felt a little naïve for playing into it.

As the wagon lurched forward, her body jostled right into him.

"Sorry," she mumbled, though just smiled as if to say, "no big deal." In fact, he seemed to like it, which was no surprise to Tina. What was a surprise was how much she liked being close to him. And even though she was a little afraid of what could happen, the possibility of him being closer gave her an unexpected thrill.

"You cold?" he asked.

"A little. I d-din't think to bring a…SWEET JESUS!"

What looked like a corpse – her blood red lips and bruised eyes emphasized only by her porcelain pale skin – had launched out from behind a tree and nearly sent Tina reeling into the people sitting behind her.

"Whoa, babe. Just relax," Puck said as the arm he'd had behind her braced her backward tumble. He called her babe out of reflex, since that was what he called most girls, and it somehow didn't sound right to him. "Alright?"

"N-not really. I d-don't d-do well with scary stuff like this." She could still feel the anxiety rolling through her, and she noticed that his arm had not drawn away from her yet.

"Why did you want to come on the haunted ride then? We could've done the other one."

"I guess I d-didn't want to be a baby about it."

_Instead, I just embarrass myself in front of you. That's all._

Almost as if he could read her thoughts, he snaked his arm around her shoulders. "It's cool. Everybody is afraid of something."

"What are you afraid of then," she asked, as she leaned into him slightly. She figured the contact would soften her words a bit, persuading him to answer.

He was torn, because honesty and girls were two things he tried not to mix. The less they knew, the better. And usually, girls accepted the standard "Puckzilla's not afraid of anything" answer most girls eat up the tough guy routine. Some girls even said it made him sexier, which he definitely never disagreed with. When he looked down at her though, still looking shaken from the first jolt, he felt a pang of what he guessed was his conscience. "Those creepy statues in your school kind of freak me out. Not like pissing my pants scared. But..I dunno. The eyes just feel like they're following you."

She didn't react immediately, because her first reaction was to laugh. But he hadn't laughed at her fear. She couldn't do that to him. "They are on the creepy side," she agreed, slipping her arm around the middle of his back.

He didn't know why, but of all the hayrides he'd been on, this was the best by far.

* * *

"How d-did you know Edelwiess?" Tina asked as she sipped on the cup of cider that was warming her hands.

Normally, this whole "talking" and "truth telling" thing would have worn on him pretty quick. But he had to fill up all the time that he would normally spend hooking up. That really had no chance of happening. And…he kind of liked telling Tina things about himself. Not just because she seemed to like listening, but also because he didn't have to worry about whether or not people would believe her if she told. He knew that, Even though she'd never promised not to, he knew that she wasn't going to tell anyone what he told her.

"My little sister loves that movie. I've seen it a million times with her. One day, she asked me if I could learn that song on my guitar. So I did."

Not at all what she expected. "You're a good big brother for doing that," she said quietly.

"Nah. Chicks just dig the guitar, that's all." He slowed the car as they came upon the same house he had parked in front of earlier. The one 3 doors down from her own.

"So…" she said, rolling the cup in her palms.

"So."

"Well, I guess I'll see you Wednesday. They'll have the play roster p-posted by then."

He frowned. He wanted to see her before that. Or at least talk to her. He also didn't want to seem desperate. Even though he kind of felt that way. "Alright," was all he could say.

"Okay," she said, disappointed that he didn't want to talk to her sooner than that. "I guess this is good n-night then," she said as she opened her door and climbed out. "Bye…Puck."

He followed behind her slowly as she walked to the door. She may not have wanted him to come near her house, but he wasn't about to let her walk even a hundred feet alone in the dark.

As drove the rest of the way home, his own name ring in his ears.

_Puck. Puck._

She hadn't even tripped over the "P," like she always did.

_It has to mean something good._


	7. Parts & Pronouns

**Catholic School Girl**

**Chapter 7: Parts & Pronouns**

He felt a buzzing in his pocket while he was talking to Finn. When he looked down at his phone, he saw the following text message.

**Cast list posted. Meet me by the auditorium? **

He grinned as the replied,** Be there in 5**_**.**_

"Those girls really can't get enough of you, can they?" said Finn.

Puck hadn't told him about hanging out with Tina. Who he had told was Artie, Sam, and Mike while they were all hanging out in Sam's basement, jamming and playing Xbox on Sunday. They all seemed pretty cool with it, but made it clear that Puck better not dick around with Tina's feelings. He wanted to resent the implication, or be annoyed by the fact that these guys who barely knew him were trying to tell him what to do, but he kind of understood where they were coming from. It wasn't him, It was any guy who could hurt their friend. If she were his friend, he'd be the same way.

She was his friend now, though. Or she was close to being. Just because he had thought about her naked, doing ungodly things to him, didn't change that he wanted that. It was why he had tried really hard not to be a complete dick to her on Friday night. And part of the reason he hadn't told Finn and the others.

He knew what they were going to say. Especially Azimio. Puck knew that he would turn on him the fastest, though he wasn't really sure why. If anything, Puck being off the market meant more for the others. But they hadn't seen the play thing that way without him explaining it first, so he knew the reaction to Tina wasn't going to be great.

The play was going to be a great cover for hanging out with her so much. Eventually, though, he knew he was going to have to man up and face what the guys, and probably a lot of other people, would say. He wasn't ready for that yet. He wanted to enjoy the two of them, if there was going to be the two of them, for awhile before the drama started.

"Guess not. But I gotta go man. Find out if I'm in the play today." He clapped his friends shoulder as he passed, "And you know what that means." He added a wink, just to assure that Finn at least had some clue.

He began to jog across the lawn, but slowed midway. He was didn't want to seem too eager, even if he was.

_Do not grin like a moron when you see her. The whole clueless dolt thing only works for Finn. _

She was standing by the front doors a smile on her face as she saw him approaching, and he realized she had been waiting for him.

"Hi," she said, the shy sound of that one word causing him to falter and reveal the exact grin he had been trying to avoid seconds before.

"So, have you looked?" he asked.

"No. I kind of wanted to do it together."

He just nodded, following her towards the auditorium. There was a crowd of girls, some looking quite happy, others not so much. He knew what rejection looked like, and some of them were wearing the sting of it openly. He felt a twinge. Could he stand seeing her look that disappointed? The thought caused him to stand back, and look away, as Tina made her way to the white paper stapled to the bulletin board.

The crowd began to clear, and the hallway grew uncomfortably quiet as she continued to stand, staring.

He hadn't anticipated her having no reaction, but had a feeling that it wasn't a good sign. He strode up behind her, reading the list over the top of her head.

He saw his name at the top. Then he saw hers…under someone else's.

_A fucking understudy…what the…_

"You got the male lead," she finally said, her words practically strangled by irritation. "Congrats." She shoved passed him, the heels of her shoes clacking fiercely in an angry stomp down the hall.

His eyes followed her before his brain could register a countermeasure. When it did, he practically chased her down, grabbing her. "Tina…hey, wait.."

She spun, snatching her arm away from him hard enough to cause a whoosh between them. "Leave me alone."

"Look, it sucks that you didn't get the lead. It's stupid, because you sing better than anyone. You're the best the school has."

He knew it was a mistake as soon as he said it, and he saw her face start to scorch a shade of pissed off he only ever saw in his mother. "You kn-know what sucks? It sucks that you got a role p-period. This p-play doesn't mean anything to you. The only reason you p-probably t-tried out was some ass from the drama girls. So you got up there, and you seduced them with that song. I can't believe I fell for it too. Fell for your act."

"Whoa! I know you're upset. But this isn't my fault. And I didn't try-out because of sex. I can get plenty of that without a stupid play!" he shot back, again regretting it.

"Oh, shut up, P-puck! You're just a jerk. Have fun making out with Mary Anne Atwood, though I'm sure you've probably d-done that before anyway!" She started to stalk off again.

He wanted to say he hadn't, just to prove her wrong, but he couldn't say it honestly. The name sounded familiar but he couldn't put it to a face. If he could, he had the sinking suspicion Tina was right. Still, she had no right to make him feel bad about it and he stood there, wondering if this was always how it was going to be. If she was always going to throw these things up in his face.

_She'd actually have to ever talk to you again to do that._

Despite his pride hurting at the thought of it, and the fact that if this were one of his friends, he'd have asked if they'd left their sack at home for letting some girl yank them around like this, he followed her out of the building and onto the lawn.

"Hey..HEY! Why don't you stop throwing a fucking tantrum and listen for just a second?" he yelled once he got within earshot of her.

If he was going to surrender what was left of his manhood, he was at least going to be the jerk she said he was about it.

It seemed to work, because she stopped, and turned.

There were pockets of people still standing around, or sitting at the picnic tables. He caught a glimpse of Sam and Mercedes hanging back, probably waiting to give Tina a ride home. Or to console her. Puck had seen Mercedes name on the cast sheet. She played the best friend to the lead, almost like the nuns wanted to twist the knife they stuck in Tina's chest.

He couldn't think about that, or them, now. He focused in on her, a nasty glare set across his face. And she stared back, not offering up a single word. She was going to make him draw blood first, so he would look like the ass when it was all said and done. At this point, he didn't really have a problem with that.

"You know, you're being really uncool right now. I was just trying to be, like, a friend or whatever. I didn't do any of this to you. So don't be all pissed at me because of it." He sucked in a breath. "And you're right. I don't care about the play. I never did. The only reason I tried out for it was you."

Her eyebrow kinked up. She looked skeptical, and surprised, all the same time.

"Yeah, I said it. I did this whole stupid thing because of you. What can I say? I kind of like you. And I like being around you."

She still said nothing, but her gaze was firmly locked on him. There was nothing to make out. She was just…looking at him. Really looking. He had never seen a girl look at him that way before. It reminded him of the way his sister looked when she sat on the living room floor, her _Where's Waldo_ book open on the coffee table. She was going to search for something, and she would find him if she did it long enough.

"I _am_ a jerk. You're right. I have done and said a lot of mean crap to girls. I haven't to you though. I mean, I did touch your leg a month ago, and..okay, I was just trying to get in your pants then. But that was the only time and now I know there's more to it than that."

The words seemed to hang in the air forever, before she finally said, "I have to go. My friends are waiting."

He was dumbfounded, and he knew it showed. "That's it, then? I spill my guts all over the lawn, like an asshole, and you have nothing? Fine, whatever. Walk away. No, wait. You always do that. Let me have a shot at it."

* * *

Tina laid in the middle of Mercedes' bed, staring at a dusty cobweb hanging from the light.

"Am I stupid for wanting to call him, or go to his house and tell him I like him too?"

_No, I was stupid for not telling him on the lawn. _

It was what she had wanted to do, but she had been surprised. And afraid. Afraid that it was all just a big game for him, like the play had been, but more afraid that he had meant it.

Mercedes looked up from her toenails, which she was painting in preparation for a family trip to warmer climates. "He'd be lucky if you did. He can't expect to just win you over with some cliché, impromptu declaration of feelings on the lawn. Life isn't a movie."

She was also afraid of this.

She knew Mercedes' heart was in the right place. It always was. And normally, she was honest to the point of being obnoxious. Now, though, Tina felt like she was being blown off because Mercedes was no fan of Puck's. It was worse than being judged for liking him. "Yeah, I guess."

Detecting obvious disappointment in Tina's tone, Mercedes she sat down the small bottle and pivoted herself to face her friend. "Look, I say what I say because I can't turn my head in the hallways without seeing a girl that he's played. But…you've spent time with him and only you know whether or not he is telling the truth."

Tina finally sat up, and gave Mercedes a solemn look. "Do _you_ think that any guy would go through all the trouble of trying out for a p-play just to get laid?"

"Puck isn't any guy, and I don't think he would," she admitted.

Tina hadn't thought so either. She just wanted to hear Mercedes say it since she trusted her friend more than herself in general, but especially when it came to Puck. "Do you think that he meant what he said? That he really likes me?"

Mercedes smiled, taking Tina's hand in hers, giving it a tight squeeze. "I've told you this before. You'd be the best thing that ever happened to him. He'd be stupid not to like you."

Tina sat quietly for a few minutes, not letting go of Mercedes hand, before saying, "Can you give me a ride?"

* * *

Puck's mom, a short, dark-haired woman who looked like she needed a nice, long vacation, answered the door. She looked at Tina as if she recognized her, which made her scrutinizing face seem like it softened.

"Is N-noah here?" Tina asked, unsure. Calling him by his first name felt odd to her, but she figured his mother wouldn't appreciate anything else.

"Yes, come in," she said as she pointed to the living room, where Puck was slouching on the sofa. He had a TV table in front of him, his plate still half full. When she looked around, she noticed a similar table sitting to the side of a recliner.

"Oh," she said, alerting him to her presence. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt dinner."

" Don't worry. We were almost done anyway," said Mrs. Puckerman. She emphasized her point by clearing her own plate and heading up the stairs.

Puck, however, took his time coming around the couch to stand in front of her with a scowl on his face. "What's up?" was his nonchalant greeting to her.

She inhaled deeply, planning to get it all out without stopping. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so awful to you about something that wasn't your fault. And I like you too…I haven't really wanted to, but I d-do. I even had a weird d-daydream about kissing you in my religion class."

_Why did I tell him that?_

It wasn't a complete loss. When her face started to flush from the admission, a grin spread across Puck's. "When was that?" he asked.

"The d-day that you chased Maureen off in the parking lot. She was actually making fun of me because my teacher called me out for not paying attention." She wasn't about to reveal the rest of it.

He chuckled, which caused her to relax. "So in this daydream…best kiss of your life, right."

She wanted to say no, just to tease him, but she couldn't. Especially since he had inched a little closer to her, the toe of his sneaker brushing against hers. It would lead to something more than she was prepared for. "I can't stay," she said. "Mercedes is waiting outside for me."

"I can give you a ride home," he offered, his voice almost too suggestive.

"Thanks, but my parents would freak if they saw a boy they didn't know dropping me off." His bottom lip curled into a pout – the most sexy thing she'd probably ever seen in her life. "But call me later?"

His expression showed no signs of perking up, but he muttered a reluctant, "Sure."

"I know it's not what you're use to but…we have to go slow. If you can't d-do that…"

"Oh, I can do it. But do I have to like it?"

"No. You just have to like me and d-deal with it."

He said nothing, but the way he was looking down at her – the happiness she saw teasing at the corners of his moth and his eyes, told her he would do just that. At least for awhile, anyway.

Hesitantly, she leaned forward, awkwardly wrapping her arms around his midsection and pulled herself close. He felt so solid, and so strong. When he finally responded, his seeming as uncertain as hers had, it hit her all at once. It was real.

_We're a "we."_


	8. Kiss The Girl, But She Won't Cry

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 8: Kiss The Girl, But She Won't Cry

_This can't be serious._

Puck used his script to cover his mouth, which was hanging wide open as listened to his "leading lady" slaughter her half of the song they had been practicing. He didn't know whether to laugh, or to feel sorry for Mary Anne Atwood. Sympathy really wasn't his thing, but this she was just so…sad. And she didn't seem to realize it. When he glanced at the hot Sister director – he'd need to learn her name at some point – even _she_ was trying to hide a "what the…" look.

"Wonderful, Mary Anne. You've clearly been practicing," stated the Sister midway through the song, all eyes shooting in her direction, practically accusing her of breaking her vows with such a blatant lie. "Now, everyone, that's all for this week. Try to learn the rest of the first act of your scripts by Tuesday, when we meet back here after school."

Puck jumped down from the stage, his script rolled up and jammed in his back pocket, and grabbed up his book bag. He liked to make a clean break from the crowd so that he didn't have to actually talk to Mary Anne, who seemed to think their lead roles meant more than it did, or any of those other girls. He only wanted to talk to one girl, and she was his focus as he climbed the stairs two at a time.

"Ever heard Britney Spears collaborate with a cat in heat while she sat on its windpipe?" he asked as he stood at the end of one of the back rows, staring down at a crown of jet black hair.

"Not until today."

He had meant to make her laugh, and he frowned when he saw the same look on Tina's face that had been there when she'd read the cast list. It was the one he saw every time she sat up here, watching Mary Anne run lines or sing songs that he knew she thought should've been hers. Even when she offered to stay after practice, and help him learn his lines – a chance that he always jumped at – he could see how disappointed she still was about being an understudy. She told him she was fine with it when he asked, but despite his instinct to accept what she said – because that's usually what he did with girls – he didn't want her to think he didn't care. He may not have with others but she was something different. Someone different.

"Hey…" He crouched down, putting his hand on her forearm, "I can still drop out of this thing, ya know. Sam can totally be Tony, and sing duets with that vocal train wreck."

Tina finally looked away from the stage below, and at him. His face was sincere, and despite the fact that he had wanted to quit the play since the week before, when he got the role, she thought him saying he would do it was kind of sweet. But she knew it wouldn't make her any happier. The only drop-out that would do that would be Mary Anne, and that wasn't about to happen. No matter how bad her voice was.

"There's n-no p-point," she said flatly as she rose to her feet, quickly pulling her arm away from his touch. "Let's just go."

With all the after practice practices, Puck had taken Mercedes' place as Tina's designated ride home. And he did it without much complaint. He liked being in the car with her, even if the drives were largely silent. There were no prying eyes. No whispers. Not that there has been much of that around school. His friends had been strangely cool since the play started, and hadn't made any comments about him staying late and spending a lot of his free time singing songs instead of scopin' chicks with them. It was almost like nothing was going on.

Actually, nothing _was_ going on.

He hadn't actually asked her out, or to be his girlfriend, or whatever he was suppose to do, but he had figured after that night at his house they were…well, something at least. He thought he could steal a smile at her whenever she was watching him from the back of the auditorium, or put his arm around her when they walked through the parking lot afterwards. Those things, in his book, fell under the description of "slow," which was what she wanted. But she wouldn't even give him that. If he touched her, she shirked away from him. If he looked at her, she always looked in the other direction.

The first few times, he'd been kind of annoyed. He was a catch, after all. Any other girl would love to be seen with him, and called him her boyfriend. But Tina wanted none of it. Learning lines, and calling her every night, was all she was willing to give him. He was starting to feel like she hadn't meant what she said. That she didn't actually like him. And as much as he didn't want it to, it was starting to bother him.

"So my mom and sister are driving out to my Nana's for the night. Wanna come over and, I don't know, just do whatever?" he offered as he turned the corner of her street. He stopped midway up her block, parking 3 houses away from hers. Like he always did.

"I don't kn-know. I'm suppose to sleep over at Mercedes' tonight," she said while she jiggled her seatbelt.

He sighed, his head hitting the headrest behind him hard. "Alright. You want me to give you a ride there then? I'll wait here while you get your stuff?"

She peered at him through the hair draping her face. His chin jutted out, almost like a pouty child's, and his eyes were little more than small pinpoints, glaring hard at nothing. "You're mad, aren't you?"

"Why would I be?"

She hesitated. "You just..seem mad," she said timidly.

"Well the only time I see you is when we're doing something with the play. You make me park down the street from your house so your parents don't see me. And you don't want me to touch you." He looked over at her, his eyes softer than before. "I know you wanted to take this all slow but it's like there's no 'this' to be slow about."

She knew he was right. That she was being unfair. But what could she do? Tell him that she didn't introduce him to her parents because her mom would ruin things? That, in reality, she wanted him to touch her, but she didn't want people to say she was just another notch in his belt? Or..or that she was afraid that once people saw them together, that there would be talk, and he'd realize that she wasn't cool enough, or pretty enough, for him and he'd dump her?

Because it was all true, and telling him would have been honest. Still, she didn't want to scare him off. She was doing that anyway, though, by pushing him away.

She reached over slowly, and laid her hand on his. "How about…I hang out with you for awhile and I'll have Mercedes come p-pick me up later on?"

Her hand was so small, but the tips of her fingers seemed to press a strange warmth into the back of his hand. "Alright. I'll take that."

When he finally looked at her, he saw her smiling. Her bottom lip curved slightly on the left when she did it, almost like she had a bit of an Elvis Presley sneer. It was kind of hot and all he could think of was that spot, or any part of her bottom lip really, caught between his teeth.

_Baby steps, jackass. She's gotta let you hold her hand first._

"Let me run in and get my stuff," she said, almost jumping out of the car. "Be right back."

* * *

"My mom d-did the 'no bacon' thing for awhile too," said Tina, as she slurped hot cheese off her chin. "That was such a long time ago. Like..when I was 5."

"My ma has some weird Jew hang-ups. We don't do anything religious, like go to temple, unless my nana is in town or we go up there. Yet we can't have bacon, and she doesn't want me to take religious studies at school," he said, impressed with the way she was putting back the pizza that sat between them on the sofa. That would be her 5th slice, and she didn't look worried about it. Girls who could handle their food were definitely awesome in his book.

"Which bothers you _so_ much," she said, grease streaking her right dimple she grinned. When he reached over to wipe her face, the both laughed, though neither knew why. "This was a good idea. I mean, sitting here, eating p-pizza, comparing crazy Jewish mom stories makes things seem less…tense. Like there's no p-pressure."

"Yeah. It's kinda nice to just hang out," he said, breaking his mom's cardinal rule of talking with his mouth full. She wasn't home so he didn't care. "Hey, about earlier. I just want you to know that there is no pressure. Between us, I mean. I didn't say what I said today to make you say or do something you don't want to."

She stopped chewing so loudly, suddenly very aware of herself, and his eyes on her. "I know," was her quiet response.

Noticing how still she had become, he set down his plate, wiping his hands on his pants, and moved the box from between them. He scooted close to her, his knees touching hers. "I mean it, you know. That I'm not gonna push you. I know a lot of people think I'm like that just because I…"

"Get around," she interjected, almost playfully.

The corner of his mouth snaked upward slightly. "Yeah. That." He rested his right hand on her knee. "But I'm trying, ya know. To not be such an ass with you."

He wasn't working an angle, and she knew it. But he was just so good at this stuff: being charming, saying the right things, wrapping girls around his little finger. Fighting it, was going to be a great challenge for her. For the moment, though, she wasn't going to try. She slid her fingers under the hand that rested on her knee, and twined them through his. "Just as long as you never chase me around, or pull my pigtails again, we're good."

"I can't promise that," he said coyly.

"It's kind of crazy to think we knew each other back then. But you knew all the girls. Guess some things never change," she teased.

"One thing has," he said, realizing he was about to say the cheesiest thing he possibly could. But girls liked that, and even though she didn't strike him as the type, she'd probably like it too. "I only want to kiss one girl, instead of all of them."

Once her laughter began, he couldn't get her to stop. She was practically falling off the couch, and he could barely keep her from do it because he was laughing as hard. He hadn't laughed like that in such a long time, he had forgotten how good it felt to just let go, and not care who was watching, or listening, or what anyone was thinking. It was just him, and her, and she was letting him be kind of silly. He never got to be this way with girls. It was always..what did they call that in movies…

_False bravado. _

Always trying to impress them, because that's the only reason girls seemed to liked him. Her, though, he could be as stupid as he wanted and knowing that made him feel strange. Almost..safe. Like the way he felt when he was with his family. Sure, his mom rode him pretty hard, but when they sat around the living room, eating dinner or watching TV, and he said something dumb, it didn't matter to his mom and sister. He was just Noah. They were a safe place for him.

_Maybe she will be too,_

"Wow," Tina finally said when she could catch her breath. "You're so lame."

He straightened himself up, and pushed his back firmly into the sofa. "That's just how I roll, babe."

"You're n-not going to make a habit of calling me that, are you?" she asked, curling herself close to him, reaching for his hand once more.

"Only if it bugs you…babe."

She nudged him, but could not manage to stop smiling. As much as her inner feminist protested the objectifying term, she secretly liked that he referred to her as anything. "I guess it's alright..for n-now."

Before he could reply, he felt a buzzing between their hips. He knew it was her phone, since his was lost in his room upstairs, and he knew who it was as she looked at the screen. "Mercedes," she said, confirming. "She'll be hear soon." As she reclined her head, pressing it into the back of the couch, he thought he saw her pouting a bit.

There was her bottom lip, again, only this time it was just there. Not pulling down when she smiled, or struggling around a difficult "p" or "n" sound. It was just..waiting.

_Waiting for me. _

"Hey," he said, softly, causing her to turn her head towards him. He leaned in sideways, gently nudging the tip of her nose with his own, bringing his face within an inch of hers. He watched her heavily lashed lids sink down, which was something he never could've imagined being so sexy. She was giving into him, trusting. There was a lingering second before he finally felt her lips pressed against his, responding tentatively. He savored the feel; of hers, and of his against them.

When he finally lulled back, his eyes immediately went to hers. He wanted to see the reverse of their fall, and if their hue of chocolate had deepened.

Tina couldn't situate anything about herself when her lids finally parted, and she saw him looking at her. She wanted to speak, or move, or respond somehow. But she couldn't. Like the kiss she had given him back had been all she could really say.

It wasn't until her phone beeped again did their eyes, their faces, separate.


	9. You Know, I Know

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 9: You Know, I Know

"What are you going to do now?" asked Mercedes, as she and Tina sat in her car.

As Tina looked across the parking lot, and saw Puck standing around with Finn Hudson, who she only knew because of their mutual McKinley friends, and two other football players, she asked herself the same question.

_It should be simple._

She was his girlfriend – the kiss on Friday, and the entire weekend they'd spent together had made that official. She should've been able to just walk up to him and take his hand, like it was no big deal.

It was impossible to pretend that, though, when it was easier for a couple of popular girls, who generally flanked Maureen O'Connor, to saunter up to him and flirt than it was for her.

"Let's just go in," said Tina, as she pulled on her door's handle.

She didn't have to look at Mercedes to know that she was rolling her eyes. "You're just gonna blow him off? You guys could barely keep your hands off each other all weekend, and now you're shy?"

Tina scowled, almost regretting filling Mercedes in on all the details of her weekend.

To her surprise, there hadn't been any awkwardness following the kiss. In fact, Tina was experiencing the exact opposite of awkward, and couldn't help but want to kiss him again…and again, and again. As they snuck kisses behind his mom's back the day before – since she absolutely refused to let them watch movies in his room – Tina realized that the whole "slow" thing was going to be a lot harder than she'd imagined. Or it was going to be as hard as she'd always known it would be, which was why she'd held off on kissing him for so long.

But now…Mercedes was right. She could be bold enough to be all over him with his mom nearby, but not when bottled blond harpies and dumbass jocks were around.

She'd have been more embarrassed if she weren't so eager to get rid of the anxious feeling in her gut.

"Can we p-please just n-not d-do this right n-now?" Tina said as she got out of the car.

Mercedes looked over the top of her sunglasses, her disapproval written all over her face. "Fine. But if you want to be with him, you're going to have to stop giving a damn what people think at some point."

Tina did not respond as she walked quickly, trying to get into the building without Puck noticing her.

Puck looked up just in time to catch a glimpse her black hair whipping in the wind as she hauled ass through the side doors.

It was a little weird that she hadn't come over, but maybe she hadn't seen him.

"We should probably go. Don't want to be late."

_Or she saw who I was with, and decided not to come over._

He hadn't been paying attention to the girls that had come over to talk. He recognized them from play rehearsal and, as promised, he'd use the chance to offer them up to his boys – even if it made him feel like kind of a creep now – but he had no interest in being around them. He was glad when they walked away.

"Puckerman, you are a man of your word," Azimio laughed, as he slapped Puck's shoulder. "That cute little one is making me look forward to the weekend. And that other one looked like she was pretty into Karofsky." This time, a large hand shoved Dave a little to the left.

"Yeah, sure," Puck mumbled as his gazed remained fixed on the doors. "Look, I'll catch up with you guys later. I have something I need to take care of."

He didn't wait for a response. He just took off towards St. Maria's.

Once he was inside, he hung back until the last bell of first hour rang. The last thing he wanted to do was have a run in with one of the nuns. They weren't likely to find him nearly as charming as Sister Mary Ignatius – who had become less and less hot every time Tina had pretty much mauled him when his mom's back was turned.

He couldn't help but grin a little when he thought of it. It had been totally hot, and not just because the shy, quiet drama geek wasn't so shy after all, or because she was an amazing kisser. It had been how into him she seemed to be. One minute, she's talking about taking it all slow, the next she couldn't keep her lips off his. He was hoping that it wouldn't stop at lips – hers or his – either.

When the hallway was finally quiet, and he walked quickly, but quietly, scanning the classes through the windows on the doors. Even though he didn't know her schedule, the school wasn't big so finding her probably didn't take him long. Getting her attention was a different story.

By luck, she happened to look up and saw him looking like he was being attacked by bees. She had to suppress a laugh and concoct a reason for needing the bathroom pass.

"What are you d-doing here?" she whispered harshly, as she practically hauled him over to a corner that was partially hidden by lockers. She looked over her shoulder nervously.

_Still a very good girl at heart._

"I noticed that you blew by me this morning. Just wondered why," he said as he let his hands rest just above her waist. "Almost seems like you were trying to avoid me." He eased her back against the lockers, a move she made no attempt to stop, and brought his face in close. "But I can't imagine why you'd want to do something like that."

She pressed her lips hard to his, a distraction that he welcomed but not for long. It took great restraint for him to stay focused on the conversation. "You didn't answer my question."

Tina's pink cheeks flared a bright shade of red, and her eyes fell to the floor. "You kn-know why," she said.

"No, really, I don't. You forget, babe, I'm not all that smart," he teased, trying to ease the tension. The look that remained on her face spelled out his failure pretty clearly.

"D-do you really want your friends, and those girls you were with, to kn-know that you're d-dating a stuttering freak?"

"Knock it off," he said, now a little irritated that she would call herself names.

She finally looked up at him, "I'm serious. You can't tell me you d-didn't worry about what everyone was going to say."

"I use to. I didn't want anyone to know I liked you when I first saw you because I thought of people would say I lost my edge or something." He pushed a piece of hair that was hanging near her face behind her ear. "And I can't say I don't care at all because if anyone says anything about you, I may have to go all Death Star on them. But I don't care if people know anymore. Because I like you." He leaned in again, his hands slipping around to the small of her back, and locking there as he brushed his lips against hers, almost as if he was daring her to kiss him back this time.

She eventually, and begrudgingly, pulled away from him. "I have to get back to class."

"Okay. I'll see you after school, out by the front steps?" he asked as he released her, and watched her walk away.

"After school," she said, looking back at him once more.

* * *

She was still skeptical as she stood next to Mercedes' locker, waiting for her friend to unload and reload her bookbag.

Making out in the hallways, she'd decided, clearly clouded her judgment. Otherwise, he'd never have gotten her to agree to meet him in front of his school, for the whole high school world to see..

"Think if I just go to the auditorium, he'll show up eventually?" Tina asked as Mercedes closed her locker.

"Okay, seriously, you need to stop. You're acting crazy. Just go out there and hold hands with your boyfriend. Or break up with him. Either way, do something because you're starting to make me crazy too."

Tina sighed. "Come with me at least?"

Mercedes smiled, and threaded her arm through Tina's. "Always, girl. Always."

The walk wasn't nearly as long as Tina would have liked, and when she reached the picnic tables, and noticed him standing on the steps with his friends, she froze. Not even Mercedes urging elbow jabbing into her side could move her.

_How can I not do this?_

Especially when she thought about him standing not so far away, confessing how much he liked her in front of everyone just weeks ago.

Looking at the spot, Tina realized that he had really meant what he'd said that morning. He didn't care that people knew they were together. Or what they would think about him liking her. She couldn't figure out why she did, or what was stopping her. Her friends would not shun her like his friends probably would. In fact, all of her friends seemed to accept them, even Mercedes. She wasn't going to lose any social steam by dating him. In fact, she'd probably get more popular, even if it was for all the wrong reasons. And if anyone made fun of her, he would defend her.

_So what is your problem?_

She felt angry, and defeated, by her own stupidity. The hot tears that burned her eyes, and threatened to spill over, only made it worse and she started to feel like someone was kicking her in the chest. All she could manage to do was collapse onto the ground, and turn her face into her shoulder.

It wasn't long before Puck was kneeling next to her, asking if she was okay. A question she couldn't actually catch her breath long enough to answer. All she could do was open her mouth, and gasp.

"You're kind of freaking me out. Tell me what's wrong," Puck said as he leaned in closer to her.

"I think she's having a panic attack or something," said Mercedes, sounding worried.

Puck's eyes darted around a bit, kind of like a scared animal, before they landed squarely on Tina. He knew that if he wanted her to stop being scared, of whatever it was she was scared of, he had to keep it together. "Hey," he said, then took her chin between his thumb and for finger and gently forced her face towards him, "Hey, look at me." When he saw her brown eyes, he strangely felt at ease. "You're cool, alright? Just..take a deep breath, and relax."

She saw a shadow approaching, then saw Finn towering over them all, "Is she alright?"

"No, man. She's like having some kind of panic attack."

Finn dropped his backpack to the ground and started rifling through it, eventually coming up with a wrinkled brown bag. "It had an old sandwich in it but maybe it'll help if she breathes into it. My mom use to get them all the time and that's what she did."

Puck practically snatched the bag from Finn and ringed the end of it with his hand. He held it up to Tina's face and said, "Here, breathe."

She blew into the bag, then sucked back in, almost too quickly to feel the relief.

"Slow down," Finn chimed in. "Just try to do it slow."

She tried it again. And again. Until, finally, she felt the heavy feeling begin to lift off her lungs. She pulled the bag away from her face. "I'm…so…sorry," she said slowly.

He got to his feet and held his arms out to steady her as she tried to stand. "It happens. I sweep lots of girls off their feet. I'm kind of a stud that way," he said with a wink.

She drew back a bit and looked around. Everyone in the yard was looking at them, and she couldn't tell if they were wondering what was happening, or if they were wondering why the hell Puck was so concerned about helping her. She looked back at him, here eyes red. "I guess everyone knows now," she said.

"Knows what?" asked Finn.

Puck looked over his shoulder, and saw that Azimio, Karofsky, and the two girls from that morning, were standing grouped around Finn. "That my girlfriend can be a little dramatic sometimes."

"Girlfriend?" It had come from Azimio and the two girls.

Puck slipped his arm around Tina's waist. "Yeah. Got a problem with that?"

No one said anything, even though he could tell by the looks on their faces that they wanted to. The girls clearly wanted to know why Tina. Azimio looked like he couldn't understand why Puck would ever take just one girl, this one especially, over a different girl every weekend. Obviously, he'd never actually liked a girl that much. Or been liked by one.

"What's all this?"

Everyone turned to see Maureen O'Connor standing on the edge of the lawn.

Tina felt Puck's arm tighten around the middle of her back, and it made her feel safe. Confident. "N-nothing you n-need to worry about," she said, her words carrying a nasty tone.

"They're dating," the girl to Karofsky's right said, still not being able to believe it.

Maureen's lip's pursed smugly, "Don't make me laugh. Puck doesn't 'date' anyone. Especially not girls like her."

"Okay, first of all, just because I wouldn't date you, doesn't mean I don't date. It just means I didn't like you. And she's just my speed, so back off."

She glared at him, and then turned her attention to Tina, "You're nothing special, Rain Man. He'll just use you up like he does every other girl."

Puck opened his mouth, but Maureen had turned quickly, her flying up a little too high, and was gone before he had a chance to say anything. And with her exit, the rest of the crowd seemed disinterested and began to thin as well.

"So does this mean…what does this mean, Puckerman?" asked Azimio, almost too loudly.

"This means I have play practice. Talk to you guys tomorrow," he said as he reached down to pick up Tina's backpack for her.

"Wait. You can't just spring on us that you're dating…her…and expect us to just be, 'how great.' "

The way Azimio said "her" was exactly what Puck didn't want to here. It was the kind of thing he told Tina he wouldn't let happen. "She has a name, and it's Tina. Learn it. And why do you even care, man? But you got what you wanted, right? You're weekend piece is right there," he said, half-heartedly waving at one of the girls who had trailed Maureen.

Azimio crooked an eyebrow, a signal that told Puck he didn't like what Puck was saying, but he couldn't find any fault on Puck's part. "Whatever, man. Go be in your stupid play."

"Like I need your permission," said Puck, an arrogant smile on his face as he turned towards St. Maria's.

Surprisingly, Tina reached over and took his hand and as they walked. "That was all too easy," she said.

"Yeah. I know. It probably won't be the end of anything. But it's out there and the world didn't end. So no more serious freak-outs, okay?"

"I really _am_ sorry about that. I d-don't kn-know where it came from."

"Would you stop apologizing for stuff? It happened. It's done. Why are you sweating it?"

She stopped by the auditorium doors. "Because I'm like that sometimes. I worry too much about a lot of stuff. Especially what people think of me. I hear a lot of girls my age are like that."

He frowned at her. "You're not all those other girls. You're you. And you like you, right?"

She finally relented. "Yeah."

"Good." He pulled her to him. "So try not to worry so much about everyone else."

"Just you, right?" she teased.

"You don't have to worry about that."

She kissed him in earnest – her way of saying thank you.

_I know._


	10. Meet The Parents

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 10: Meet The Parents

Strands of her hair that weren't twisted up in Puck's right fist were catching on, and being tugged out by, the cement wall at the back of the stage as she attempted to keep pace with Puck's fervent mouth. His chapped lips felt dry against hers and, for a split second, she wondered if the raw spots made kissing her feel like pure agony. She forgot about this, however, when she lost track of his left hand, which had been tucked behind her knee, pulling her leg up around his thigh.

"We have to go," Tina gasped, reluctantly pushing at his chest. "Or, I have to go. I'll be late for religion."

Making out in the auditorium during their shared independent study period had become their afternoon routine. Puck had even taken the initiative to learn his lines for the play – which was what they had been using the time for – at home just so it wouldn't get in the way of something he actually enjoyed doing. He also figured if all he was going to get was making out – and some occasional second base action, because his girl was kind of awesome like that – he was going to do it as much as humanly possible.

He flashed her a crooked grin, which was the one thing he knew Tina couldn't resist. "C'mon, babe. You could ace religion in your sleep." He kissed her lightly, teasing her bottom lip with a gentle bite. "What's one class?"

"N-not fair," she protested, but didn't stop him from sucking on the spot – and god was he good at it – just behind here ear.

"Not suppose to be," he said, his voice muffled.

"Okay," she said, breaking away before he could catch her. "I really have to go. If I miss a class, they'll call home." She stood, fingers combing through her hair, desperately trying to hide what she'd been up to. "Then I'd have to explain everything to my p-parents."

Puck shrugged. "You're going to have to tell them eventually."

She looked at him, one eyebrow raised as if he'd just said the dumbest thing she'd ever heard. "What? That instead of working on my music, I'm making out with my boyfriend that they don't kn-know about."

"Don't leave out the part about letting me touch your boobs sometimes. It adds shock value," he teased as she swatted at him. With her missed attempt, he grabbed her by the hand and pulled her to him.

"I'm serious," she said, not really knowing what else to say as she felt his hands slip just under the bottom of her white dress shirt, his thumbs gently rubbing circles on either side of her belly button.

"So am I," he said, "I'm pretty proud that you let me get anywhere near them."

She tried to suppress a smile. Even when he was vulgar, she found him charming. "You don't even want to meet my parents. So why are we even talking about it?"

She was right. He hadn't actually met any girl's parents in awhile, mostly because parents were never high on his list of people he liked meeting. Usually they took one look at him and he could see their impressions written all over their faces. "Thug," "delinquent." "Stay away from my daughter." He really didn't want to have to prove himself to strangers, especially when he'd already proved himself to her. But he was tired of parking halfway down the block when he picked her up or dropped her off. And he hated always having to hang out at his house whenever they did because his mom was constantly looking over their shoulders. Sure her mom sounded like a bit of a nightmare – because who could anyone not like Artie just because bro was in a wheelchair – but she couldn't be any worse than his.

And even though he pretended not to notice, because he didn't want to upset her by talking about it, he knew it bugged her to lie to her parents. Crazy and overbearing as she made her mom sound sometimes, Tina loved her, and the way she talked about her dad – he was basically her hero and defender when it came to her mom – Puck knew that they were super close. Outside of Mercedes, and the McKinley crew, they were the people she spent the most time with. Lying to them didn't come naturally to her, and he knew that if he bit the bullet and met them, she wouldn't have to worry about it anymore.

"Because that's what boyfriends do, right? They meet parents to make their girlfriends happy, then their girlfriends repay them with some serious lovin'."

She shoved him playfully. "One track mind."

"What can I say? You're kinda hot like that, and I'm kind of a dude like that," he said. "So, seriously, when's this whole 'meet the parents' thing gonna go down?

Her face fell a little. While the idea of rewarding him in the way he wanted for meeting them appealed to her, she still was unsure of how it would all go. More specifically, what her mother would find wrong with him. She liked him way too much to break up with him now, but she knew her mother. If she detected even an inkling of imperfection, she would latch onto it and never let go. "I'll let you kn-know."

"Soon," he called out, but she offered no reply.

As she sat through religion, which she arrived to late and had to concoct a crazy lie about losing her sheet music and just having to find it before coming to class, she couldn't manage to focus on what the Sister was saying. She was focused on how she was going to make this thing with her parents meeting Puck…well, work.

She knew that her dad would not give him a hard time. In fact, she had mentioned Puck to him before, but only casually. He was "a boy she was helping with his lines," or, "the boy in the play, the one he gives me a ride home sometimes." Still, she knew her face was too revealing when she talked about Puck, and even though her dad said nothing more than, "That's good sweetheart," there was something in his soft smile that told her he knew. He probably wouldn't expect Puck when he walked through the door, but he would likely be more willing to accept him.

It was her mother he was going to chase him away.

She would see his mohawk, and his worn leather jacket, and automatically assume that Puck was no good. She would taking him being in the play, as him encouraging Tina in all the wrong ways. The only thing that he would going for him was that he was Jewish, and that his mom was kind of strict, but not even those things would trump the other stuff. It would probably take a day or two, but her mother would get around to scrutinizing the relationship to Tina, and drive her nuts with each little thing until...

_Until I either start seeing what she sees or I stop it before it gets that far._

"You coming?" she heard. When she blinked, and looked up, Mercedes was standing over her. Class must have been over, since Mercedes wasn't in her religion class, but she just hadn't heard the bell.

"Uhm, sure. I actually have something I n-need some help with," she said as they walked down the hall.

Mercedes looked at her. "This isn't going to be a sex thing, is it? Because, I really don't know if I can handle thinking of Puck...like that."

Tina chuckled. She and Mercedes had never talked about "sex things," mostly because neither of the had much to talk about as far as personal experience. But lately, Mercedes had been dropping hints that she and Sam were doing more than just cuddling in pretty much every conversation they had. "No, it's not about sex. It's about him wanting to meet my parents."

Mercedes stopped dead in her tracks. "Do you think that's a good idea? I mean, it's Puck."

"I know," Tina said lightly as she kept walking towards the auditorium.

"And…it's _your_ mom."

"I know that too."

Mercedes eyebrows shot up, but Tina couldn't tell what if she was confused, or just skeptical. "Wait, this was _his_ idea?"

"It kind of came up randomly, and he pushed the issue."

"But why? He seems like the type who'd want to avoid parents at all costs."

Tina nodded. "Me too. I was kind of hoping that's how he'd be, anyway. But he insisted. Something about 'that's what boyfriends d-do,' and him 'getting some lovin',' out of it."

"He's meeting your parents so he can get laid?" Mercedes scoffed.

"See, that's the thing. He's n-not going to get laid, and he kn-knows it because we don't do that," Tina said, her voice growing a bit sheepish by the end. She knew she shouldn't be embarrassed by such a thing, especially not with Mercedes. But somehow, knowing that Mercedes and Sam were doing…something…made her feel like she should be on par somehow.

"Do you think maybe he's…trying to be a stand up guy?" suggested Mercedes.

"He doesn't n-need to try," Tina said, as they walked into the auditorium and she saw him on the stage, crouched down talking to Artie, who was putting the finishing touches on some scenery.

"If you feel that way, maybe you should invite him."

"And if my mom can't see that in him?" Tina asked.

Mercedes put an arm around Tina's waist. "Then she can't. And she'll make you crazy. But you won't let her get to you, because you can see it."

Tina turned to her, a smile on her face. "Have I ever told you what an awesome best friend you are?"

Mercedes bumped her hip against Tina's. "You don't have to. I already know I'm fabulous. Now go, and tell your man he's having dinner with your parents tomorrow."

* * *

Puck stood in front of a door he had seen tons of times. Knocking on it, though, was a complete trip, mostly because he'd never thought he'd be walking through it.

After how resistant she'd been, he was surprised that it took her about an hour to decide she wanted him to have dinner. And now that he was standing there, he was hoping that doing it was as good an idea as it had been the day before, in the auditorium.

He'd gone all out – bought a new dress shirt, which he'd hid in his car so his mom wouldn't see it and make a fuss, put on a real tie, a skill he'd have to thank his Nana for teaching him if it all went well, and got some flowers for Tina's mom. That last one had been Artie's idea. He said it might get him some points, and Puck was pretty sure that he was going to need all the help he could get tonight.

"Why are you sweating this? You're a badass," he said to himself.

_Whose wearing a gay looking tie and carrying flowers._

He took a deep breath, and tucked his chin to his chest like he was about to charge into battle, before he finally rang the bell.

When the door opened, a middle-aged Asian man that Puck recognized stood there, a smile on his face.

"You must be Noah." He offered Puck a hand.

Puck fumbled with the flowers, before responding with a shake. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too," said Mr. Cohen-Chang, as he ushered Puck into the front hall and offered to take the flowers and his coat.

Puck noticed that he was looking down at the man as he hung up his jacket. He wasn't a big guy himself, and it only made Tina's dad seem tinier. Still, he treated Puck differently than other dads. He looked him in the eye, and he didn't talk down to him like he was just another dumb kid who was trying to get in his daughters pants. Puck felt like he might have a chance with this guy. Or, at least, he hoped he did. Having one of her parents in his corner might actually be nice.

When they walked into the dining room, Tina and her mom were already sitting around a set table. "I'm not late, am I?" he said, feeling suddenly intimidated.

Mrs. Cohen-Chang turned around, and stood, which did absolutely nothing to ease Puck's nerves. Unlike her husband, she was tall. Almost like a statue. Or one of those indestructible pillars he'd seen pictures of in his history book. "No, of course not. We just wanted to be ready when you got here, Noah."

Puck figured that was "mom speak" for, _we don't want you to stay any longer than you need to_. For some reason, though, it snapped him out of whatever weird, unsettled state he'd been in. "Cool. But you can just call me Puck. Everybody does." He moved to the empty chair beside Tina, and gave her a quick kiss on the temple before he said down.

The dinner was good – her dad had made jambalaya because she'd told him it was Puck's favorite, which Puck thought was pretty cool. Her mom barely gave him a chance to eat it though because she was asking him a million and one questions about his family, and school, and all the things that he liked to do. She had a pretty good poker face, so he really couldn't tell what she thought of his answers, but he didn't care too much. He just answered honestly.

"Tina tells us that you are in the play with her," her mother said after the dinner plates had been cleared, and Puck was working on his second serving of dessert - lemon bars, another of his favorites.

"Yeah, I am," Puck said, making sure not to talk with his mouth full. "Actually, Tina was the reason I tried out. I wanted to talk to her, and I knew she liked to sing, so a musical made sense."

"You must like to sing as well, since you got the lead."

"Singing's alright. I actually like to play more than sing," he admitted.

"Oh really? What do you play?"

"Mostly guitar. A little bass, and drums. And piano," he said.

"That's very impressive," she said, leaving her dessert untouched. He would have found it odd that she wasn't eating, since they were so damn so good, but he figured it would've kept her from interrogating him Law&Order style. "You know Tina plays piano. Her father insisted. He thought that it would build her confidence, what with the stutter and all. That's what got her into singing, you know? She just started singing along to the songs she played."

"I guess it worked out, then, because she's a great singer. Hands down the best at her school," Puck said, as he reached over and squeezed Tina's hand. "They were stupid for not giving her the lead in the play."

"Well, obviously they had their reasons," said Mrs. Cohen-Chang, matter-of-factly.

Puck looked squarely at her, suddenly feeling very protective of Tina. "When you hear the girl who is playing the lead sing, you're going to think their reasons were wrong. Trust me. It makes hanging out in a nursery full of screaming babies seem like a picnic."

The attempted smile on her mom's face was more of a straight line than anything, and Puck knew instantly that he had probably said the wrong thing. Still, she moved on from it quickly, muttering a quick, "We shall see," then asking, "So, Puck, how serious is this thing between you kids?"

Tina let out a low groan, not the kind he was use to hearing while his mouth was assaulting the few parts of her she allowed it to. When he turned to look, her cheeks were turning a deep shade of red that, strangely, he loved seeing on her. "Jees, mother. Subtle."

"What? I think it's an honest question. I'd like to know what's going on between the two of you."

Tina shot Puck a warning look, almost as if to say, _don't be yourself right now, and just tell them what they want to hear._ He was a little annoyed by it, mostly because he'd spent the whole dinner not saying anything inappropriate. Not one curse word the whole. And now she was worried.

"I like Tina, a lot. And, from what she's told me, she likes me too."

"Yes, clearly, dear. But what does that mean? I know you children are so fond of putting labels on everything, so what would you label this? Are you in a relationship, are you just dating, are you…what is the phrase the kids use, Jeffrey…oh yes, friends with benefits?"

"Oh my god," hissed Tina, who's red face had now fallen into her hands, looking like she wanted to die.

Puck tried not to laugh at the last part, mostly because he always found it funny when adults tried to use the same phrases teenagers did. Even if she had meant to be malicious, he couldn't take it seriously. "It's nothing like that, Mrs. C. She's just my girlfriend, and I'm just her boyfriend. Nothing shady about it."

"Miriam, dear, I think we've harassed Puck enough for one evening," Tina's father piped in. He had been quiet for most of the dinner, asking a pointless question, like which sports teams Puck liked, here and there. Now he was going to swoop in and save the day. "We should probably let him go before we embarrass either of them any more."

Mrs. Cohen-Chang laughed lightly. "Oh, I'm sorry if I embarrassed anyone," she said, directing her words more towards Puck than Tina. "Just a curious mom is all."

Puck stood up, and offered to pull Tina's chair out – another classy move suggested by Artie. He really owed that kid. "No worries. My mom is the same way. Thanks for dinner, though," he said as he walked into the hall to get his coat.

"You're welcome to come back any time," Mr. Cohen-Chang said, giving Puck an apologetic smile and a pat on the shoulder. "Tina, why don't you walk Puck to his car?" She nodded and quickly pushed Puck out the front door.

"I can't believe her," she fumed as they walked through the cold November evening, towards his car. "I mean, she basically asked you if we were having sex."

"Yeah. But at least she's not like my mom, who straight up asked me if we were having sex and when I told her 'no' she didn't believe me at first." He took off his coat his coat off and wrapped it around her, a gesture she appreciated. "It's really not a bid deal, babe."

"You sure?"

"Totally. I mean, that could've gone way worse, right?"

She was about to tell him that she didn't really know how it went, considering that her mother wasn't really the type to call him out up front. She would try to undermine him later on, when you're not around. But Tina did not want to make that his problem, or to seem like she was worrying too much. "Yes, much worse." Tina leaned against him. "So I guess I'm going to have to make good on your end of the deal," she said, a devilish smile on her face that he hadn't seen before.

"Huh?" he said.

Standing on the curb, she reached up and kissed him roughly, her lips hard and demanding against his. "Round one of the 'lovin' ' you get for meeting my parents," she said. "The rest you get tomorrow, after play practice since my parents will be at the theater…late."

His mouth curved against hers as she took his hand, and guided it underneath his jacket.

_Operation Meeting Mom…success._


	11. Love, In Love

**Note:** Sorry that it's taken so long to update this. I've just been incredibly busy at home and work, and feeling completely uninspired. Hopefully this makes up for it, and I just wanted to say thanks to all of you who've been hangin' tough with this fic. I really do apprecaite every person who keeps on reading chapter after chapter.

* * *

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 11: Love, and In Love

The thing about his mom was this: She was always on his ass about something. Grades, chores, not "throwing it at every girl who crossed his path." But the bottom line? Shira Puckerman was proud of her baby boy, and him being the lead in the play practically made her glow with it.

Puck didn't even need to peek between the heavy blue curtains to see her beaming face sitting in the front row. He knew she was there, with his Nana, his little sister, Sara, a bunch of people from Temple, and a handful of his Nana's neighbors. It was like he had his own fucking cheering section, with his mom leading the wave.

It was opening night, and he was actually pretty nervous, though he wasn't about to tell anyone that because that would involve him admitting he actually cared about this stupid play. He didn't know when _that_ had happened, but dumb as he could be, he knew the reasons why.

He looked over his shoulder, and saw her standing with Mercedes, making a few last minute alterations to her friend's costume. Tina was in plain clothes and even though she looked hot, it was wrong to him. She should have been in a costume – more specifically the simple white and blue dress that Mary Anne had on. She should have been the one up on that stage, singing the songs that Mary Anne couldn't.

She should have been playing his leading lady, the girl that he loved.

The thought caught him off guard, and he had to let the word "love" roll around in his head a bit.

He had never much liked the idea of it, mostly because it meant him giving up a lot of stuff that he liked doing. Flirting, having sex with whoever, partying, hanging out with his friends. Having fun. With love, all that stuff was gone.

He'd also never seen a lot of good come out of it. His mom had tried to love his dad, but it wasn't enough to make him stay. And it only made her hate him more for leaving. Losing his Pop to a heart attack when he was 12 had done the same to his Nana. She was just as bitter and angry about having had love as his mom was about not having it.

_Maybe it wouldn't be like that with Tina._

She had looked up then, just like she had the first time he'd seen her sitting alone almost 3 months ago, like she could hear what he was thinking. It happened a lot and sometimes it freaked him out because she _would_ know what he was thinking. Other times, it was kind of nice not having to explain himself to her. He could just relax, lay his head in her lap, and not have to say anything to her because she just got it.

And the things he thought he'd miss out on, didn't seem to matter when she was around. She had no problem with his friends, since they were her friends too. And the ones who weren't – his football friends and whoever – she didn't mind either. When he wanted to do something without her, she didn't give him a hard time. She wasn't one of those clingy chicks who wanted to be with him every second – probably because they spent most of their time together anyway – and didn't need to know who he was with all the time. She gave him his space.

The sex stuff was a little more frustrating for him, since they weren't actually doing "it," and sometimes it sucked not being able to just hook up with hot girls who obviously wanted him. But Puck knew he wasn't exactly deprived or anything, since Tina rarely shied away from fooling around with him. And as eager as some chicks were to please, they couldn't do for him what she did. It may have made him a bit of a shmuck, and practically a girl himself for thinking so, but it meant something to him that she trusted him enough to let him touch her in the ways he did.

"You look good," Tina said as she came up beside him.

"I look like a tool," he countered, scowling a bit as he ran his hand over his shorn head. "I can't believe they made me shave the 'hawk."

She reached up, kissing his cheek, "You kn-know you're sexy, so stop complaining," she purred, the sound making him forget all about being nervous.

"So what are we doing after this thing is over?" Puck asked. "And don't say that lame ass cast party. I've spent more time with most of these people than I ever wanted to."

"Actually, Sam's p-parents are out of town tonight and tomorrow for some wedding, and he invited all of us over after just to chill."

Before he could say anything, Puck heard Sister Mary Ignatius calling him, telling him that people were taking their places. He nodded and leaned down to give Tina a quick kiss on the forehead. "I'll see you after."

She smiled. "Break a leg, stud," she teased as he made his way to his place behind the back curtain.

* * *

He had been amazing. He had nailed all of his lines, and portrayed his character perfectly, outshining everyone on the stage. The audience fell in love with him, which was no surprise considering the majority of them were women. When he took his final bow, some of them were screaming wildly.

He hadn't seemed to notice any of it though. The only woman Puck was really focused on was her. Even when he sang _Tonight_ with Mary Anne, he had made sure to glance over the top of her head a few times and lock eyes with Tina, who had been standing in the wings, just in case Mary Anne forgot her lines and needed it read off to her. And at the end, when he looked over at her again, and mouthed something that looked strangely like, "Love you," to her.

Seeing it had made Tina feel so...overwhelmed, even though she tried hard to convince herself that she was seeing things when he did that.

She had been taking her relationship with Puck in stride, enjoying being with him and not worrying too much about putting a name to what she was feeling. When he looked at her during that song, though, it reminded her that she was the reason he had gotten on the stage in the first place. That he had gone through all of it, even though he didn't want to, just to make her happy.

He was always doing that – making her happy that was – without really even trying. Like the weekend before, when she'd been sick and he'd brought her some of his mom's chicken noodle soup, and a copy of Twilight, which he'd convinced her mom was more stupid than harmful. Or all the times she'd clearly been having a bad day and he'd written silly songs to sing to her until she laughed. Or the night before her road test, when he took her to the testing lot and helped her with her parallel parking, which she nailed during the test. Or all the times he came to pick her up when her mom was driving her crazy without question.

And she always felt like he was being as honest with her as she was with him. She knew it was hard for him because honesty usually involved talking about things Puck would rather not. His family, his past. Stuff that he just wasn't proud of or just wanted to bury because it hurt. He still did it, though, even though she never really pressed the issue.

They weren't perfect, and she knew it. He could be a jerk sometimes, and she could be a bitch. They were both a little stubborn and always ended up arguing about the stupidest stuff. Most of it wasn't even worth remembering, which was probably why she couldn't half the time.

As she stood back, watching Puck's mom show him off to the crowd of people that were obviously guests of hers, Tina realized that love wasn't really about perfection. It was just about…_what the hell was it about?_

Tina had never been in love, and even though she had imagined herself having it, she'd never really figured out what that meant. The movies always painted a clear picture. There was always just a moment when someone knew. Tina thought that was kind of silly, like all you had to do was show up at the right moment, and presto, you were in love. It couldn't be that easy.

_Or maybe it is? _

She noticed that he was looking back at her now, and nodding his head slightly, which was the signal for her to swoop in and save him. She wasn't accustomed to running at his beckon call, but she knew he'd been tortured enough for one night. That many Jewish grandmothers would be too much for anyone.

She eased through the circle and as soon as she was close enough, he practically threw his arm around her. "It's been really nice talking to you all, but I have to give my girl here a ride home," he announced, then turned to his mom and said, "Is it alright if I stay over Sam's tonight?"

"Of course, sweetheart. You did so well tonight, and you deserve some fun with your friends." Shira took his face in her hands, kissing him on both his cheeks, which elicited an embarrassed 'jees mom' from him. She then turned and, much to Tina's surprise, pulled her into a tight hug.

"Thank you," Shira whispered. "Thank you for making him a good boy."

Tina just smiled at her, and waved good-bye to everyone as Puck practically pulled her out of the auditorium, and to the car.

They sat quietly for a few minutes before Tina said, "You were really great tonight."

He reached over for her hand, and brought it to his mouth for a swift, but tender kiss. "Even when I was lockin' lips with whatsername?" he joked.

This got him a slap to the chest and a, "watch it," to which he chuckled while turning the key in the ignition.

"Your mom seems to think that I'm reforming you," Tina said, as he turned out of the parking lot and headed in the direction of Sam's house. "She thinks I'm 'making you good.' "

"That's because she's never found your panties while cleaning my room." Her not responding was…_what was that word_…unnerving. Usually, she laughed at that sort of thing. "I was just joking, babe."

"How is you telling me about other girls' underwear funny?" she asked, her tone a bit sharper than she had intended. She knew she sounded annoyed, but she wasn't really. Or, at least, she wasn't with him. Repeating what his mom had said, and feeling like she was right – that Tina was good for him, and that he was as good for her – had brought the whole "love" thing to the forefront of her mind again, and somehow made it feel more real. Being in a confined space with him, though, made her feel very uncomfortable.

"I didn't mean anything by it," he said, getting a little defensive.

"Right. You having sex with random girls _wouldn't_ mean anything, would it?" Now she was just trying to pick a fight, and limit the chance that she'd do something even more stupid than she was, like telling him she might love him. At least an argument wouldn't scare him off.

He hit the brakes hard, the tires skidding a bit on left over slick spots from that afternoon's light snow. "Whoa. What did I do to deserve that?"

His eyes were hard, but not angry. They looked confused and…kind of hurt. She knew she'd shot him a low blow, and that fact made her feel like a complete ass. "Nevermind. Let's just get to Sam's," she said, forcing her eyes to focus on the dashboard. "My head hurts and I just want to lie down."

Nothing was said after that. Not even when he opened her door when they got to Sam's or when Sam opened the front door for them, goofy smile on his face, congratulating them both. Tina simply asked where she could put her things, and practically dashed up the stairs after Sam gave her the directions.

"Is she alright?" Sam asked, as he offered Puck a soda from the fridge.

"Said she has a headache or something. But that was only after she flipped her shit on me a little for making some harmless crack about..." When he thought about it, like really thought about it, he could see how Sam probably wouldn't think the joke was so harmless, "Okay, maybe what I said wasn't cool, but it wasn't even about her, so I wasn't being mean or anything. She got pissed out of nowhere."

"Try just saying you're sorry?"

Puck shrugged. "I would if I knew what I was supposed to be sorry for, bro."

They both heard Artie's voice coming from the basement, asking what the holdup was and something about getting their Xbox on.

Sam walked around the counter, and clapped Puck on the shoulder, "Go talk to her. Maybe it'll help."

"Yeah, maybe."

"But I'd wash all that crap off your face before you do," Sam said. "Bathroom's the door directly across from the stairs."

Puck had forgotten all about the fourteen layers of make-up caked on his face, and it felt like it took him an hour to scrub it all off. Once he had done that, and changed into a hoodie and track shorts, he rummaged through the medicine cabinet in search of Aspirin. He filled up a Dixie cup with some water then tried to remember where Sam had told Tina to go. Which room she was in.

The first door was a bust. The second was too. He finally found her behind the door at the end of the hall, curled up in on top of the comforter, he back facing him.

He set the cup and the pills on the nightstand then sat down on the edge of the bed. "Figured I'd bring you something for your head."

"Why?" Her voice was quiet, and it sounded like she needed to clear her throat.

"Because it might make you think I'm not a complete asshole."

She was still, but just as he was about to walk back out of the room, she rolled onto her back and reached for his hand. "You're n-not. I shouldn't have said what I did. It was mean."

He scooted closer to her, and helped her pull herself up, so she was facing him. He let his hand rest on her hip. "I really didn't mean to hurt your feelings, or whatever."

"You didn't. I just…I…" She looked up at him, her eye a little glassy. She didn't cry around him much, because she knew how uncomfortable it made him. He had told her once that it sucked because he couldn't do anything about it. That it made him feel pretty useless.

He cupped her cheek then stroked it with his thumb. "C'mon, T. Just tell me what's goin' on."

She bit her lip. "I d-don't want you to freak out or anything."

"Look, you can't be pregnant, so whatever you tell me isn't gonna be that bad."

She put her hand over his, pulling it away from her face. "When you were d-doing the final bow, you mouthed something to me. What was it?" she blurted out, her words crashing into each other.

He frowned, but quickly tried to cover it. He'd kind of hoped that she hadn't seen that. Not because he hadn't meant the "love you" he'd mouth, because he did. Seeing her standing behind Mary Anne, her eyes never leaving him, made him feel like it _was_ going to be different with her and he wasn't going to end up like his mom or Nana because Tina always had his back.

But he hadn't wanted to spring it on her. And he sure as shit didn't want her to tell him she didn't feel the same. He had to be honest with her though, because lying was bad enough. But lying to a girl who might cry? Never cool. "It was 'love you.' " He focused on his lap, not wanting to see how she'd react.

Much to his surprise, he heard a small, "Me too," then felt her grip tighten around his hand.

His head shot up. "What?"

"I said, 'me too," she said, suddenly scooting closer to him, seating herself between his legs and wrapping both arms around his neck. She let head fall into the crook of his neck. "I love you. And I was afraid you'd think it was stupid, or too soon. Or…or you didn't feel the same. That's why I started a fight in the car. I'm sorry."

He ducked his head, brining his face close to hers. "Don't worry, babe. If I hadn't been such a pussy, and just said it out loud, you wouldn't have acted all crazy."

She snorted, her mouth crooking into a grin. "You really kn-know how to make a moment."

With a grin to match hers, he tipped her chin up with his index finger, and brushing his lips against hers in a sweet, almost chaste, kiss. As the kiss deepened it, the words, "I love you, Tina," passed quietly between their parted lips.

_So much. _

_So much. _


	12. Unsuspecting

Catholic School Girl

Chapter 12: Unsuspecting

The last day of school before summer vacation was always the best day of school. But since that was still six months away, Puck had decided that the day before Christmas vacation started would take its place. He may not have celebrated Christmas, being Jewish and all, but he never passed up the chance to be as far away from the hell that was school as possible.

"Only four more hours," he said to Tina, an impish smile on his face.

She had rarely ever seen him like this. He was practically giddy, like a little boy who had gotten the fire engine he'd asked Santa for, and it made her tuck in closer under his arm as they crossed the parking lot to the door of her school. "D-don't let the priests see you this happy about it. They'll just find a way to keep you longer."

"The hell they will!"

"Let's hope n-not," she said as she pulled on the collar of his coat – never had a second hand, wool lined, denim coat looked so sexy on anyone – and pressed her mouth to his. "I heard your mom say she's working a double today, and your sister has a sleepover party. If you're stuck here, then I'd have to spend the entire afternoon all alone in your bed. What, oh what, would I do?"

He groaned thinking about the possibilities. "You're killin' me here, babe," he complained, trailing his lips along the line of her jaw. "You can't say stuff like that with four long hours ahead of me. It could leave me scarred for life."

_Especially after last week._

Puck was pretty sure that it had been the "I love you" high that had made it happen. Not that he cared about the whys. All that mattered was that she'd been in his bed, and all the way naked. They hadn't actually had sex, mostly because he knew she still wasn't ready for that (being a "good guy" was really starting to cramp his style), but the sight of her had been…kind of spectacular. Getting to know all of her, seeing the places his hands had been before – especially the ones that drove her crazy – was something he'd never experienced before.

Just thinking about it made his pants uncomfortably tight. And her kissing him the way she was – seriously, the things that girl could do with her tongue – wasn't helping.

"Ahem…Mr. Puckerman."

Breaking away from Tina, Puck looked back to see Father Malone. He was the youngest, and most easy going priest at St. Sebastians. Still, Puck knew he took God and Jesus and all that pretty seriously, so Puck getting R-rated with Tina right in front of the school wasn't going to sit well with him. "Hey, padre. How's it hanging?"

Father Malone could not help but smile. He had always had a bit of a soft spot for Puck, despite the fact that Puck was constantly testing his patience. But where all the other teachers saw a troublemaker, and lost cause, Father Malone saw a smart kid with mischievous streak. Puck just needed to be given a few extra chances, and he knew giving them to Puck had earned him Puck's respect. "I'm well, Mr. Puckerman. You seem the same. But why don't you redirect your vigorous enthusiasm towards the math quiz you have first period." He looked down at his watch. "Which begins in 10 minutes. Catch my meaning?"

Puck grinned. "Loud and clear."

The father nodded, smiled at Tina, and walked away.

"Look at you, getting in trouble already," Tina teased.

"I should go, babe." Smirking down at her, he slid his hands under her coat, and down her back, his fingers grazing a small bare skin just above the waist of her skirt. It was near the small of her back, and the contact sent a burning prickle creeping up her spine as he rubbed it gently with his thumb. "See you at the assembly?"

"Mmm-hmm." She hooked her finger under the knot in his tie, pulling her to him and planting a not so swift, not so tender kiss squarely on his mouth. "See you then."

He waited for a moment, watching her walk through the doors. He hadn't been kidding when he'd said four hours was too long. And not just because he couldn't stop thinking about her all tangled up in his sheets, looking shy as he'd kissed his way down her torso, or stop hearing the sounds she made when he'd reached his destination. Sure, that stuff was hot and all, but he just…he just missed her when she wasn't around. Even if it was pretty sappy, being around her made him feel better about himself. He'd never suffered from low self-esteem, so it wasn't like he depended on her for his happiness or anything. When she was around, though, it was just easier to be happy.

And being happy was definitely better than being pissed off all the time. He hadn't realized how much time he spent that way before he met her.

Walking towards his building, Maureen, and two of her flunkies, caught his eye. They were walking away from Azimio and Karosky in the parking lot. Their heads were pushed together, and when they saw him they snickered, and looked away quickly.

"Better watch yourself with your girl there, Puckerman, or the priests getting on your ass will be the least of your worries." It was Azimio who said it in a taunting voice. When Puck saw look on his face, something didn't sit right. Like he knew something about something that he shouldn't. Like he was about to be himself and try to make Puck as miserable. And from the look on Kafosky's face, Puck knew he knew what it was.

"Give him a break," Finn piped in, coming up next to them. "By the looks of it, all the effort he's put in is finally paying off."

Puck wanted to take tell Finn to shut the fuck up about his girlfriend, but he was still watching Karofsky. He wasn't about to let whatever Azimio was up to go. If he did…something was going to happen and it wasn't going to end well. Karofsky was his only shot. So when Azimio and Finn forked left, towards their first class, Puck grabbed Karofsky by the arm and slammed him hard against a brick wall.

"What the hell!" snapped Karofsky, giving Puck a healthy shove in retaliation.

"Alright, Karofsky. Spill."

Karofsky rolled his eyes, an arrogant chuckle rumbling in his throat. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"I know Azimio's up to something. It's written all over his face. And I know you know what it is. So either you tell me what's going on or…" Puck couldn't believe he was going to play this card, because it was such dick move. But whatever Azimio was going to do probably involved Tina, since them being together had set him off in the first place, and Puck wasn't about to let her get hurt. "…I'll put your secret out there."

"I don't have any secrets, man," Karosky said, almost too calmly.

Now it was Puck rolling his eyes. "Oh right. I forgot that whole 'being into dudes' thing was common knowledge." By the color that Karosky turned, Puck knew he got him. Karosky was scared now, and would say anything. "Look, I don't care what you're into, bro. If it's guys, it's guys. Whatever. That's your deal. I just want to know what tons of fun has up his sleeve. So tell me what you know and we'll be square. I won't bring the gay thing up again."

"Why should I believe you?"

"Because outing you is not more important to me than stopping him from taking whatever half-baked revenge he's cooking out on my girlfriend."

Karofsky locked eyes with Puck, and for a split second, Puck was nervous. Not because Karofsky was threatening…but what if he called Puck's bluff? Puck didn't want to tell everyone about Karofsky. That would put him on Azimio's level and even if he wasn't the best guy, Puck knew he was better than that. What if Karofsky expected that, and told him to go ahead? Or what if he decided he didn't care what people knew? That was much less likely, but the way he was looking at him, Puck knew that nothing was impossible.

"Alright, fine. I'll tell you. But you have to swear that my…well, what you said about me stays between us. Because I don't even know if I'm gay."

"Sure. Whatever, dude." Puck offered a hand, and Karofsky took it. "Now, tell me what you know."

Karofsky looked around, like he was in some cheesy spy movie and expected someone to come out of nowhere. "I heard Azimio talking to Maureen, Lydia, and Madison earlier about this girl at McKinley who's pregnant. Her name is…Quinn, or something…"

Puck couldn't hear another word Karofsky said after that, since all the blood in his body had rushed to his head and was pounding so hard against his ear drums that no other sound registered.

Quinn Fabray.

Puck had met her at a party in late August, right after school had started for him and just before it had for her. Finn's step-brother, Kurt, had introduced them and even though Finn had seemed pretty into her, he didn't make his move. So Puck made his. Hot blond at a party? Why not.

He'd never planned on it being a one night stand, but when she didn't answer two times of his calls, he dropped it. She was pretty, sure, but a lot of girl's were. And a lot of girls probably weren't as high maintenance as she seemed either, since she spent the entire night talking about how fat she felt, and how much drama there had been at cheerleading camp, and could he get her another drink because what would a few more calories hurt since she was already a cow. He'd spent most of the time trying to tune her out.

Now, though, he wished he could remember whether or not she'd mentioned being on the pill, or the patch, or whatever. Because he hadn't used protection – obviously not one of his brighter moments – and if she was pregnant then…

"…the rumor is that you're the father."

Puck looked at Karofsky, imagining that his own face looked a little like Karofsky's had when a few minutes ago. He wondered if Karofsky had felt like someone had just kicked him square in the stomach too.

"Is it true man? Are you the father?"

Puck leaned hard against a row of lockers, staring straight at the ceiling. "I slept with her in the summer but…I slept with a lot of chicks in the summer. None of them got pregnant. Fuck. This is bad."

Karofsky stood back awkwardly. He and Puck weren't really that close, or anything more than teammates, actually, so what was he suppose to say or do. "Yeah," he offered. "I didn't catch all of what was said, but I think…I think those girls are going to tell your girlfriend."

The idea of Maureen O'Connor speaking to Tina was bad enough. But having her tell Tina this? It shook him right into action. "I gotta get to her first," said Puck.

"What about the math quiz we have this period? We're late as it is." Karofsky called as Puck started sprinting towards the outside doors.

_Fuck math, this is more important._

"Yes, Mr. Puckerman. What about math?"

Puck stopped dead in his tracks. He knew it was a mistake as soon as he turned and saw Father Bill Kagan, the school's assistant principal and the meanest old bastard he'd ever met. Puck had spent more time staring him down across a desk than he had spent in an actual classroom. This guy hated that Puck's mom had talked the principal out of making Puck take religion, and he was pretty sure this guy wasn't a fan of Jews in general. Hating Puck's guts didn't seem like much a chore for him.

There was no way Puck was going to get to Tina now, and he knew that. But he wasn't about to go down without a fight. "Father. I have an emergency. See, my girlfriend goes to school next door and I…" _Shit, Puckerman. Think…think.._ "I just remembered that I have her inhaler and I need to get it to her in case she needs it."

Puck knew it was as lame as it sounded when he could see Karofsky doing a facepalm behind them. And by the look on Kagan's face, he wasn't buying it either.

"Well, if she is in desperate need of it, I can certainly have one of the office aides take it to her if just hand it over to me."

Puck really hated this guy. "It's in my car. I'm not about to give some officer lackey the keys to my ride."

"Again, you can give them to me, and tell me where the item in question is."

"Why would I trust you with my stuff, dude?"

"Disrespect won't get you anywhere, Mr. Puckerman. So I suggest you adjust your tone."

"I don't have time for this. I need to get to my girlfriend and you can't stop me, so back the hell off me and let me go." Puck was losing his, and was practically snarling now. He wanted to hit Kagan, even though he was sure hitting a priest was probably a pretty big sin no matter what religion you were. But doing that would only get him in more trouble than he already was. Adding assault charges to his records wasn't something he really wanted or needed.

"You're a minor. If I have to call the authorities to come and keep you here, then so be it. But you aren't leaving this school. Especially not with what you young people deem appropriate behavior between people your age. I can only imagine what you would get up to with your girlfriend."

"It's gotta suck only being able to imagine it. The real thing? So much better."

The priest's mouth snapped into a tight lipped smile then."You just bought yourself detention, Mr. Puckerman. And, you will have the privilege of not only taking your math quiz in my office, but spending the rest of the day there as well."

* * *

"You weren't at the assembly," Tina said quietly.

He had seen her sitting, alone, the same table she had been the first time he saw her through a window as he came out of the building. Standing over her now, watching her tugging at the ends of her hair, she looked nothing she had then. In fact, now she did kind of look like that little girl he remembered from childhood – anxious, and a little sad even.

_Maybe she didn't know yet. Maybe she just had a long day. Or something._

He'd spent the whole morning, staring at a wall in Kagan's office, trying to convince himself that since he wasn't there, maybe it wouldn't happen. Maybe Azimio would want them together when he announced in front of everyone for ultimate humiliation, and he'd somehow convince Maureen that was the best way to go. That getting locked up in that smelly office was the best thing Puck had ever done, because it had saved them both – her from being hurt, and him from being the one who caused it.

"I guess you called it, babe. Just couldn't keep myself out of trouble," he said, sliding down across from her, acting like nothing unusual had happened. "Kagan gave me detention. I guess he didn't like the crack I made about him not getting any." He reached for her hands. "But I'm here now, so why don't we get out of here and go back to my house."

When she pulled her hands back from him, he could everything change in instantly. There was no doubt anymore. The fact that she couldn't even look at him unraveled all of his convictions.

"Is it true?" she asked, almost like she knew he knew she knew.

Puck's heart had sunk, and was stewing at the bottom of his gut while everything else was rising up, causing a sour burning in his throat. He was about to ask her what she was talking about, but knew that would just be insulting. "I don't know. Maybe."

"Did you sleep with her?"

He sighed heavily. "Yes, but it was before school started. Before I knew you. And it was just one time."

"It only takes one time," she said, sounding as detached as those voices in the health class videos.

"I know. But…it might not even be mine."

"But it could be, and that's the point," Tina said.

Puck could the tears building in her voice – it was something he'd heard in a movie once and hadn't really understood until now, when he'd heard her trying to hold everything in – and he wanted so badly to fix it. "I didn't do this to hurt you. It was just something that…happened."

She dragged the back of her hand across her face, and finally raised her head to reveal a smeared trail of black along her cheek. "Do you know how stupid I feel right now? Stupid for having to find out about this from a girl that I _hate_. And for having everyone think that I'm the idiot who thought…you'd be different with me."

"I have been different with you. You know it." He scooted closer to her, taking her face in his hands. She tried to pull away, but he held on tightly. She was going to listen to him, even if he had to make her. "I never lied to you. If I'd know about this, I'd have told you. I tried to when I found out this morning but…well, I messed it up. Seems to be my strong suit, doesn't it?" He paused. "I know I screw everything up. I just…you have to know that I love you. And, whatever this is, I'm going to take care of it."

"You can't just make a baby go away, Puck. You can't just make her go away if it's your baby she's having." She wrenched herself away from him then, standing up and moving away from the bench. "And I can't just pretend like none of it exists because I don't want it to."

He stood behind her, gripping her hips and pulling her back to him. "Please," he whispered, his mouth so close to her ear that he could almost hear the sound of his own voice echoing from inside it. "I know it's hard but I need you. I don't know if I can do this without you."

Tina began to weep then. She turned in his arms to face him, fat tears staining the color of her white dress shirt. Taking his face in her hands, like he had hers, she pulled him down, and kissed him in a way that she never had before. Like she might never kiss him again. "I'm so…sorry," she gasped, as she stepped around him and kept right on walking.

Puck waited for a thought to register, but nothing did. All he could do was fall back down at the table, gripping the edge for support. He'd been through a lot of stuff in his life, but hadn't had really felt the urge to cry about any of it.

_This though_.

He pressed his hand over his eyes and let the tears he'd never cried before fall.


	13. You Can't Make Me, And Neither Can I

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 13: You Can't Make Me, And Neither Can I

_Can we please not talk about the baby my boyfriend is having with someone else?_

That's what Tina wanted to say to her mom, as she sat at the dining room table, pushing her food around to make it look like she was eating. Her father was working late, so that meant she was stuck having dinner alone with her mom, who had been fixating on the issue of Puck for days now. How she had found out about it, Tina didn't know. The only theory she had was that Mrs. Puckerman had found out that Puck had gotten a girl pregnant and she ended up calling Tina's mom, looking for answers. Tina hoped, for Puck's sake, that wasn't the case. That his mom hadn't found out yet. Otherwise, the nagging he was getting would be a thousand times worse than the one she was.

_Puck._

Her mother hadn't been the only one focused on him. It had only been a few days since Tina had last seen him, but he was all she could think about since school let out.

She had wanted to turn back around the second she walked away from him that day. Actually, she hadn't gotten very far before she _did_ turn around, and saw him slumped over the table they'd been sitting at. What had stopped her from walking back – more like running back, because that's what she'd really wanted to do – was the fact that he was sitting there, crying. She knew it wasn't the first time a guy had ever cried, and that it wasn't wrong for a guy to cry. She'd just never seen it happen so she really hadn't known how to handle it, especially since she'd probably been part of the reason he was upset. How was she suppose to make a boy feel better about a bad situation that she'd made worse? And if she couldn't deal with something small, like a few tears, then how was she going to deal with dating someone who was having a baby?

That's what'd made her keep on going that day. And it was what had kept her from taking any of Puck's calls or answering his texts. She didn't want to break up with him, because she loved him as much as he loved her – even if it thinking about loving him was stupid right now. She just couldn't see any way for it to work if he was going to be a dad.

"…and I can't believe that something like this could happen. I mean, where was his mother in all this? And where were her parents?" Mrs. Cohen-Chang finally stopped to take a breath, and looked at Tina. "This never would have happened to you. Dad and I never would have let it."

Tina wanted to tell her there are plenty of times it _could_ have happened. Plenty of times when she and Puck had been alone in his bed, or her bed, or his car, or behind the curtain of the stage at school, or the guest room at Sam's house. The list was endless. And not her mother, her father, Mrs. Puckerman, the Ohio National Guard, the President or God himself could have stopped it. "It happens to a lot of people my age, mom. Turn on the TV. There are a whole bunch of shows about teen moms having babies and their boyfriends dumping them in the end. At least P-puck is going to try and do what's right."

Mrs. Cohen-Chang lifted one of her perfectly manicured eyebrows. "Honey, I know that you want to believe that he is a good person, but do you really think romanticizing his role in this is such a good idea? He did get a girl pregnant, a girl he barely knew from what I heard. If he hadn't done that, he wouldn't have to worry about doing the right thing."

"P-Puck's n-not a hero. I get it. Can we just d-drop it?"

"Don't be angry with me. I just want what is best for you. And it's become apparent that Noah isn't that."

"P-please stop," Tina pleaded, clutching her fork so hard that her hand was beginning to shake.

"I just want you to understand the reality of…."

"STOP!" Tina screamed, a violent sweep of her arm sending her plate crashing to the floor. "I'm not STUPID! So stop treating me like I am! You don't care that I'm hurt, just like you didn't when you p-pushed me to break up with Artie. You don't want me to be happy! You just want me to do everything your way!" She pushed her chair back so hard that it nearly tipped over, and her hands stung from how hard she slammed them on the table. "But I love Puck! So stop bad-mouthing him and leave me alone!"

Her mother had no chance to respond to the outburst because Tina stormed out of the room, grabbing her bag and coat off the banister as she made her way to the front door. Just to prove how angry she really was, she slammed the front door hard enough to make her mother's very expensive holiday wreath fall into a pile of dirty snow mounting on the porch.

She crunched through frozen snow until she was out of sight from her house. Wanting to get away from the sound of her mother's voice had driven her up the street, but as she sat down on the wet, snow-covered curb and the quiet surrounded her, the urge to start screaming again, and never stop, became overwhelming.

_Why can't she just be a mom? _

Tina'd had this thought many times before, but the last few days had made her feel like she was really missing out. Even if her mom had never been through this exact situation – and Tina was almost one hundred percent sure she hadn't – it would've been nice to have someone to talk to who had experienced more of life. Someone who Tina might actually believe when she lied and said everything was going to be okay because she'd survived some drama of her own.

But that person wasn't her mom, and it probably never would be.

Pulling her knees up to her chest, Tina laid her face against them. Now the loneliness, and all of the things that happened, began to swim freely about in her mind, and the urge to scream changed to tears.

The cold had also changed. It was freezing now, and the wind was biting at the end of her nose, which had become stuffy from crying.

She couldn't go home. At least not until her dad was around. That way, when her mom confronted her, there was at least a chance that someone would be on Tina's side. But she really had nowhere else to go, and no one to call. Mercedes was in Chicago visiting family for Christmas, and calling Sam, even though he was her friend as much as he was Mercedes' boyfriend, probably went against some kind of girl code. Mike Chang's mother would have immediately called hers – Tina hated how close knit the Asian community in Lima was sometimes – and Artie's house was too far to walk, especially in the dark.

Even though she knew it wasn't the "right" thing to do, and that it made her look completely pathetic, she pulled out her phone and texted the number she always did when something like this happened.

* * *

He came around the front of his car, holding a blanket to wrap around her. "You alright, babe?"

"D-don't," Tina said, her voice more timid than she wanted it to sound. "I'm n-not okay, and you calling me that doesn't help things."

Puck mumbled sorry, but still offered her a hand so she could pull herself off the curb. Her small hands felt like ice and he was tempted to take them and stick them in his jacket pockets. He'd been doing it for the past few weeks, because she always seemed to be forgetting her gloves at home. Every time it'd happened, he would smirk to himself, convinced she just wanted her hands in his pockets, but said nothing. Now, though, he didn't want to push his luck. The fact that he was letting him touch her at all was some kind of miracle.

"Wanna tell me what happened?" he asked as he opened his passenger side door for her.

Tina remained silent until they had both settled into the car, and she could feel her fingers and toes again. "I had a fight with my mom."

"Must've been bad if you called me," he said, his eyes glued to the road.

"There was n-no one else to call," she replied simply, her voice flat.

"So what was the fight about?" Puck pressed, trying to ignore the fact that she'd basically called him a last resort.

"You," Tina said quietly. "She heard about…the baby."

Silence gripped the car again until Puck rounded a corner, pulling up in front of a house she'd never seen before. "Where are we?" Tina asked.

"Finn's house," Puck said. "The Hudson-Hummel clan are making first Christmas memories in California with Kurt's aunt. So the place is empty."

Tina looked at him. "What's wrong with your house?"

"My ma, she…well, let's just say I'm not really welcome there right now. I've been staying here since yesterday."

_So _his_ mom knows too. _

Tina felt worse for him than she'd thought she would, and her impulse was to wrap her arms around him. Instead, she followed him up the front walk, keeping a safe distance to prevent her grabbing him, and through the front door after he'd unlocked it with the key hidden behind the loose "3" tile of the house number.

The inside of the house was warm, but she didn't take her coat off as she sat down on the sofa in the den. Something about keeping it on made her feel guarded.

"So how bad was the fight with your mom?" Puck asked, coming into the room with two bottles – one plastic, the other glass. He handed the plastic one, filled with water, off to her, and took a gulp of amber colored liquid from the glass bottle before setting it on the coffee table in front of them.

"P-pretty bad," Tina offered, focusing on his beer bottle instead of him. "She kept telling me how awful you are, and I told her that I wasn't…I told her to shut up and leave me alone. I screamed at her and broke a p-plate."

"Sounds kind of like what my mom did when she found out. She broke a coffee mug, and punched me in the side of my head." He pointed to his temple, revealing a fresh cut. "Even got a souvenir."

Tina looked up and the sight of his wound made something in her chest constrict, like something had a death grip on her heart. This time, it was impossible for her not to touch him, and despite knowing it was a worse idea than calling him had been, she scooted closer, running her fingers carefully over the welt on his face.

His response was to turn his face, so his lips pressed lightly against the heel of her hand. "Feels better now."

The words made her pull her hand away abruptly. "You shouldn't have d-done that," she said, as much to herself as to him. "I shouldn't have called you, and I really shouldn't have come here." She practically leapt from the sofa and made a charge for the door.

Puck was after her in less than a second. "C'mon Tina, wait."

"N-no. I can't do this. I don't know how. I don't know how to deal with you being someone's father…"

"Might be," he corrected. "I went to talk to Quinn…" The way Tina's face fell when he said Quinn's name, and the tears that were looming in the corners of her eyes, almost shredded his insides. Her day had obviously been bad enough, and he felt like all he was doing was making it worse. But he figured that telling her what he was about to would fix it. Or at least make it a little less shitty. "And when I did, she told me it might not even be my kid."

"What?"

He came up to Tina, and stood so close that their hips almost touched. "She told me that she was with this other guy when we did it and the only reason she did it with me was because they'd had a fight that day. I was like payback sex or something. I don't know. But they made up like the next day, and they've been together since. So it could be his kid."

"I d-don't want to hear this," Tina said, even though she hadn't moved from the spot where she'd been standing.

"Why?"

"Because you won't kn-know until it's born, which gives you a lot of time to get attached. So if it's n-not yours, you'll be messed up about it. And if is…then what? You'll want to take care of the baby, and you'll fall in love with the baby, then you'll fall in love with…" Tina couldn't bring herself to say Quinn's name. "…her. That's how it always happens. Then I'm all alone again."

"It might not be that long though because she might be having some test done where they stick a needle in her stomach so that they can tell us who the father is before it's born."

Tina frowned. "Couldn't that hurt it?"

"Maybe. But I guess this guy she's with has some weird genetic stuff in his family, and the doctor thinks she should go to some specialist and have it done in a couple of weeks just to make sure. She says the doctor told her they can check to see who dad is too." Puck stepped in, touching his forehead to hers. "And if it's not mine, we can get back to what we were."

The unexpected hope Tina felt welling up in her quickly turned to sinking disappointment when he reminded her that knowing wasn't really the issue. If the baby was his, it was his. Knowing it in two weeks was no different than knowing it in sixth months because time couldn't change biology.

She ducked her head away from his, as hard as it was to do, and stepped sideways to circle him. "P-please d-don't say that."

Puck looked confused as he stared at her. "Okay, fine." He rubbed the back of his head, something Tina knew he usually did when he was frustrated. "What can I say then? What do you want me to say? Do you want me to say I'm sorry? That I'm a complete fucking idiot?"

Tina was crying again, though more softly this time, feeling just as frustrated as he was. "You're n-not an idiot. You just did something stupid. And I kn-know you're sorry." She sat back on the sofa and looked at him, hand trying to hide her face. "I know Mercedes would kill me for this, but I'm n-not even mad at you. You were right before. You didn't do this to me. You didn't know me then." She twisted the bottom of her thin sweater. "I just d-don't want this to be happening. But it is and it's just…hard."

He walked towards the sofa, but far enough to snatch up his beer bottle and sit on the arm. "So…you're gonna break up with me then?"

Taking a deep breath through her mouth, Tina tried to form the word "yes." She knew she should do it, because it would be much easier for them both if it turned out the baby were his. But looking at him, cut on his face, and the obvious hurt clouding his hazel eyes, she couldn't make herself do it. He was already alone and, for the moment, she was the only person he seemed to have.

"I can't." She reached for his hand, pulling herself towards him. "I love you."

She let him kiss her, and then wrap himself around her as they laid their quietly.

_No matter how much it'll hurt in the end. _


	14. Super Hero Meets Reality

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 14: Super Hero Meets Reality

Puck hated doctor's offices. The TVs in the waiting rooms were always on some lame health channel that repeated the same stuff every 10 minutes, and the magazines always looked like they'd been chewed on then run over by a riding mower. The receptionists were always kind of bitchy, and getting to see the doctor took forever. When Quinn had given him an out on the appointment for her test, because they wouldn't find anything out that day anyway, he took it.

Now – a little over a week later week later – he was staring at the ugly pattern of the waiting room carpet, sitting across from Quinn's boyfriend, Jamie, and his mom, waiting to hear the same test's results.

He'd never been to a doctor who took care of baby stuff before. There weren't many people there – a couple of women, and a guy or two – but he felt like some of them were giving him dirty looks. Maybe he was just being paranoid, but it was like they knew he was the one who didn't fit in the picture of Quinn and her mom, and Jamie and his mom. _They_ looked like a perfect family, caught up in a bad situation. Him though? He was the juvenile delinquent who had caused it all by knocking up the sweet, little church girl.

Puck gave himself a mental shake, because he knew better. So did anyone else who knew him. He always, _always_, took care of business when it came to protection because his dad had been a teenage father, and the last person in the world he wanted to be like was that deadbeat.

Not suiting up that night with Quinn had been a really stupid mistake, he knew that. He also knew that being a little drunk was no excuse. Still, that stuff didn't make him a bad person and he kind of wished people would stop acting like it did.

His mom especially.

Even after the last few weeks, she was still boiling mad at Puck, which meant she hadn't spoken to him, and he still wasn't allowed to step foot inside the house. The worst part of it, though, was that she wouldn't let him see his little sister, Sara. He'd found this out when he tried to pick her up from a friend's house one day, because his mom was still at work and Sara wanted to come home, only to be told by the friend's mom that she wasn't allowed to let him take Sara anywhere. It had pissed him off because she was only 11 and cutting her off from him was a punishment she hadn't earned. As much as it hurt that his mom couldn't get over the drama, and just support him, he figured he deserved it. But his little sister didn't.

Luckily for him, Kurt's dad, Burt, and Finn's mom, Carol, were being cool about him staying with them for as long as he needed. And even though the old pullout sofa in their basement wasn't a dream come true, it was better than sleeping in his car. Staying with them also worked out because it meant that he got to see Tina on a semi-regular basis.

Tina had decided to go home and face the wrath of her mother the day after she and Puck had made up. Something about biting the bullet and all of that. He even said he'd go with her when she did it. It turned out not to be one of his best ideas, since Mrs. Cohen-Chang had called him a reprobate – he hadn't known what it meant, but knew it wasn't good – and basically screamed him for 20 minutes before literally pushing him out the front door. But he'd wanted to show that he was serious about Tina, baby or no baby.

Mr. Cohen-Chang had respected Puck for doing it – he told him so later – even if he wasn't happy about the baby stuff or the part Puck played in Tina running off like she did. With a little bit of sweet-talking, and a lot of promising she would never do anything to scare him like that again, Tina managed to get her dad firmly on the Noah Puckerman bandwagon. Her mom wasn't having it, though. Tina was absolutely not allowed to spend any time alone with Puck, which basically meant they could not spend any time together at all since her parents worked all day long, and her mother had claimed the evenings as time for she and Tina to "work on their mother daughter relationship." Puck thought it was garbage, and he knew bonding time with her mom made Tina miserable, but there wasn't much he say or do about it, so they spent the first part Christmas break apart.

It wasn't until Finn's family came home, and Puck explained everything to Burt and Carol, that things changed.

Puck had been pretty surprised to find out that Mr. Cohen-Chang was Burt's tax attorney and he'd known Tina's parents longer than Tina had known Kurt, or any of the McKinley guys, and he was even more surprised to hear that they were friends outside of work too. Talk about people who didn't seem like they'd have anything in common. It was that friendship, though, that worked in Puck and Tina's favor, because Burt was able to convince Mrs. Cohen-Chang that what happened to Quinn wasn't going to happen to Tina. Not on his watch anyway. He promised that whenever Tina and Puck were at their house, he or Carol would be there as well, keeping an eye on things.

And Burt was a man true to his word. Tina and Puck could barely kiss without a pair of parental eyes being on them.

Normally, having adults cockblocking him left and right would have annoyed Puck. But, for the first time ever, sex or anything close to it, was the last thing on his mind. The whole situation with Quinn, and the baby, and the not knowing, kept him from focusing on anything else. Including hooking up with his girlfriend.

Tina had been understanding about it, though. Or just, well, quiet. Puck couldn't really tell the difference between the two. He was just glad she still wanted to be around him. She had even offered to come with him to this appointment, but Puck figured that she'd been through enough. Sitting around with him and a bunch of people from Quinn's life would have just been awkward. Especially if it turned out the baby was his.

Puck shifted uncomfortably at the thought of it, and then looked at his watch.

"Relax, dear," said Jamie's mom. Puck looked up at her and realized she was talking to him. "Test results can be very complicated, so it takes time to go over them."

Puck didn't want to say anything rude – at least not to her because she'd been pretty nice when she really didn't have to be – so he just nodded, and watched her as she patted Jamie's arm. It made him a little jealous, and he wondered why his mom wasn't there with him. Why _she_ couldn't be that way. Thinking about her made him feel empty almost instantly, and he now wished he'd said yes to Tina. At least then he'd have someone sitting next to him.

Finally, Quinn's mom came through the doorway.

"Quinn would like to speak to both of you."

When she glared at him, kind of the way he thought the other women around him had been, he knew that this wasn't going to end well.

* * *

Tina stood at the front door, but didn't knock. The knock, she told herself, could change everything.

She had been walking out of school with Mercedes – first day back from break – when she got his text. All it had said was, "Just got back from the doctor. You should come over."

The whole ride over, she had tried to decode the message, ultimately deciding that "detective" wasn't going to be a career prospect for her.

Now she was just standing there, not wanting to know…and wanting to know.

_Do it for him._

Tina pictured Puck sitting alone, in that musty basement, on a sofa bed that probably smelled as old as it was, waiting for someone to tell his news to. Or, better, he was waiting for her since she was the one he had asked to come. She then thought of all the times she had texted him with similar messages that probably meant the same thing his had.

_Please come over here and safe me._

It was what she wanted to do. She wanted to be like Wonder Woman, swooping in and saving the day, no matter what was about to tell her. If it was his, she wanted to find a way to make it okay for him because she knew how much he didn't want to be having a baby at seventeen. If it wasn't, she wanted walk through his mom's front door, like he had hers, and make a strong argument for why Mrs. Puckerman should let him come home.

But she couldn't even knock on the damn door, so how was she going to do any of that?

"You waiting for something?"

Tina turned to see Finn standing behind her, a gallon of milk in his right hand. "Just the courage to kn-knock," she said, surprised at how candid she was being considering she didn't really know Finn that well.

"You don't have to knock. My mom sent me out for this," he lifted the jug a bit, "because Puck told her you were probably coming over and she didn't want to leave. So the door's unlocked. All you have to do is turn the knob."

Tina hesitated still. "I d-don't kn-know if I can."

Finn, who was now standing beside her, reached for the doorknob, turning it and pushing it open at the same time. He didn't say anything but waited there with her until she found the strength to move her feet.

Carol was coming through the kitchen, meeting Finn for the milk when she saw Tina. "Noah's downstairs. Just make sure you leave the door open," she said, kindly.

Normally, the basement was strictly off limits, as was any room with a door on it or a horizontal service in it. The only places that Carol and Burt could keep an eye on them were the den, the kitchen, and the living room, so those were the only places Puck and Tina were allowed to be together.

Being told she could come down there was like being summoned by an executioner, and Tina felt a little sick as she climbed down the stairs slowly.

It was dark at the bottom, the only light coming from a dim bulb hanging from the low ceiling. Puck was exactly where she thought he'd be and even though it was hard to see, the way he was sitting told her that everything she had been dreading was about to come true.

She felt her legs go numb, which only pushed her down onto the edge of the bed next to him faster. She reached for his hand, lacing their fingers together, before she froze all together.

Puck squeezed her hand so tightly, she thought he might break all of her fingers. "Kid's mine," he said weakly. "It's for sure."

Tina wasn't sure what to say. "Congrats" and "Sorry," both sounded wrong for different reasons. She tried to think of what they always said in movies, or on TV shows, when something like this happened. "What are you going to d-do?"

"Nothing, I guess. I mean, Quinn doesn't want to keep the baby because it's mine. So she's giving it for adoption."

He sounded disappointed and it made Tina hate this girl even more for rejecting Puck over and over again. It also made Tina wanted to hit her, even though Tina really wasn't the violent type. "Is that what you really want?" she said, her anger seeping into her words.

Puck shrugged. "Sure. I mean, this way things don't have to change. And that's what I want."

A lie that Tina saw right through. She could tell from the minute he found out the baby was his, everything had changed for him. He may not have wanted it to turn out this way, but she knew that he wanted to be a good guy, and do the right thing. He had told her about his dad leaving a few times, and she knew that he couldn't ever do the same thing to his kid, which meant that he already wanted to take care of his child, even if no one else wanted him to.

Tina wanted to cry, more for herself than for him now, but she knew that she couldn't make it about her. He was already having trouble with this whole thing, and it was only the first day of knowing for sure it was his to deal with. If she couldn't be Wonder Woman, she was going to be his girlfriend. Even if it didn't mean much.

She pulled her hand from his only to wrap her arms around the middle of him and kissed his neck. "I bet you'd be a good d-dad."

He stroked her hair, and she could feel the hard swallow of his tears. "At least someone thinks so, babe."

"She might change her mind," Tina said.

"Doubt it." He stood up abruptly, and Tina caught the quick swipe of his sleeve across his face. "Let's go upstairs and watch a movie or something."

_Code for "I don't want to talk about it anymore."_

Tina didn't press the issue. If he all he wanted was for her to be there, then that's what she'd be.

_There. Always there._


	15. Home Again, Gone Again

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 15: Home Again, Gone Again

Being "homeless" pretty much sucked. At least that's how Puck saw it.

He couldn't complain about a bed to sleep in and food to eat, but after a month of staying with Finn's family, Puck had started to feel like a freeloader. When he'd told Burt this – talking to a guy who was an adult about feelings and stuff had been weird for Puck – Burt decided to give Puck an afterschool job at his auto body shop. Being able to take care of his own car insurance and gas, and give Carol and Burt a little money for what they called "rent," did make Puck feel a little better.

Still, he wasn't feeling the basement.

And he wasn't feeling being part of the Hummel-Hudson clan. Everyone was really great, even Kurt with all of his "diva movie marathons," and they never made Puck feel unwelcome. No one could ask for a better family than them. But Puck wasn't shooting for better. He just wanted his own family back, screwed up as it was.

He missed his sister, and pretending like he hated watching all of those dumb, teeny bopper shows she loved with her. Or playfully refusing to let her listen to the Beibs in his car, but always giving in and singing along with her when he would drive her home from school, or gymnastics, or temple. He missed hearing about her day, and all the silly drama of middle school, and who stole whose best friends or boyfriends. She didn't have a boyfriend, she'd always told him, because "boys are idiots," which had always put a smug grin on Puck's face.

And, even though she drove him nuts with her constant nagging about chores, and school, and not being such a whore, he missed his mom too. He thought about calling her, and asking her to let him come home every day. He always chickened out, though. It wasn't that he was above begging – he'd do anything to get home at this point. He just didn't know what to say other than he was sorry, and he'd try to be better. Proving himself to his mom was what he needed to do, but he couldn't do that if she wouldn't let him come around.

Whenever he laid on his bed, like he was doing now, thinking about them, it only made it harder to deal with the idea that they weren't the only family he was losing.

Quinn was already sold on adoption when she'd talked to him in the doctor's office that day and he understood why. Or, he was trying to anyway. Quinn was the perfect, prom queen, white picket fence sort, and a baby screwed all of that up. All she wanted was to live her life like none of it had ever happened. And, sure, he'd kind of wanted to do the same but that was before he knew the baby was his. Now, he didn't just want to give the kid away like it was a sweater or something and it made him mad as hell sometimes that anyone could treat a kid that way.

That someone had treated him that way.

Who was he suppose to tell that to, though?

He picked up his phone again, scrolling down to Tina's number, but he didn't hit the call button.

She'd been handling this, and all of his moodiness – he'd been kind of an ass lately, and he knew it, not really thinking about anything other than his kid – like a champ. He knew it was more than he deserved, especially after he had laid into her over a few days before about – wait, what had he been mad about again – and almost making her cry.

But he wasn't asking her to do it. She could leave at anytime.

_No she can't, and you know it. _

He was being a selfish prick. That much was obvious. If he were a good guy, he would have let her go in the first place. Now, she was stuck with all of this just like he was. All because she loved him.

Puck sighed, throwing the phone down so hard on the lifeless mattress that it bounced.

"Noah, honey, can I talk to you?" When he looked up, he saw Carol standing at the bottom of the stairs.

Normally when an adult asked him that, it usually ended with him being in trouble. Carol was different than most adults, though. It was hard for Puck to describe, but it was almost like Carol was everything a mom should be. She wasn't a pushover or anything, and there wasn't much that Finn got past her, but she was always understanding and supportive. Had Finn been in Puck's situation, he certainly wouldn't be sleeping in someone else's basement. Carol would have been upset, but she would've done whatever it took to help Finn out.

In the weeks that had passed, Puck had started to feel like she was doing the same for him. Just like Burt with the job and all the car stuff, Carol was trying to help Puck learn things he needed to know, like how to separate and do laundry, and how to cook easy stuff like spaghetti. Things that a man should know how to do, she'd told him. He'd appreciated her treating him like he was a man, which is something no one else really did. It also felt good to know that the reason she did was because he was earning it.

He sat up, trying to smooth the blankets on his unmade bed out. "Sure, Mrs. H. What's up?"

She crossed the basement and took a seat next to him. "Not very comfortable is it?" she said, patting the mattress.

_Not at all._ But he didn't want to seem ungrateful. "Nah, it's cool."

She smiled. "You're a good boy, Noah." She patted his thigh, which made him feel kind of warm inside. Like he was a little kid all over again. "And you're welcome to stay here as long as you need. But…" she paused, turning to look at him. "…you should be sleeping in your own bed. At your own house. That's why I called your mother today and convinced her that the two of you should talk."

Puck looked at her, but just barely. "Did you tell her about the baby?" he asked.

"No. I thought she should hear that from you."

He nodded in silent agreement. "Do you think she'll let me come home?" he asked, quietly.

"I don't know," Carol replied after a thoughtful minute. "All I know is this is a step in the right direction. And one that needs to be taken."

"I've wanted to call her. I've just…been too scared," he admitted.

"Sometimes we just need a little help, and a little push," she said as she squeezed his shoulder, and stood up. "We'll leave in a bit, since she agreed to this afternoon."

"We?" Puck looked at her.

"I'm going to drive you, and pick you up, so no matter what happens, you won't have to face it alone."

He felt the urge to jump up and hug her, but if he did that, he'd probably cry too. And that was the last thing he needed to be doing. "Thanks, Mrs. H."

"Anytime."

* * *

"…and the paternity test showed that I'm the dad." As much as he wanted to play the 'this is going to be your grandchild' card, he thought it would be smarter just to stick to the facts.

Shira sat on the other side of their kitchen table, feeling as far away to him as she had for the past month even though they were in the same room. She hadn't hugged him when she opened the door, or even said hello. But she hadn't thrown any dishes, or fists, so he felt like he still had a chance.

"What are you going to do?" she said, her voice stiff with what Puck figured was anger. She was sipping on coffee, and clutching the handle of the mug so hard she probably could have turned it to dust.

"Quinn's giving it up. He aunt and uncle can't have kids or something, and they want to take it."

"Who decided that?"

"Quinn's mom and dad, but she's going along with it."

"So that's it? You just let them dictate what happens to your baby?"

Puck clamped his lips together tightly, biting the top one to keep cuss words from spilling out. He wanted to tell her it wasn't what he wanted, but what could he do? It's not like he could fight against the Fabrays without a parent in his corner.

"It seems like the smart thing to do," he said, his voice strained.

She threw her hands up."Just like your father. Make some babies, then leave the mess for someone else to clean up."

Puck gripped the edge of his chair, again trying to restrain himself. "That's not what I did! I screwed up, okay, and I know that." Her back was to him, her hands resting on either side of the kitchen sink. "But I am trying be responsible. Do the right thing."

"You're always trying. Yet here we are, your biggest mistake of all staring us right in the face." She turned to look at him. "I have your sister to think about, too, you know."

He didn't understand, so he just stared.

"She's getting teased at school, and at Sabbath school. All because of you. And…" She ran her fingers through her hair roughly. "People are talking, like I'm going to let the same thing happen to her that has happened to you. "

Heat rose to his face. Puck wasn't going to let that happen to his sister. She wasn't ever going to be pregnant at 17, or he'd crack some kid's fucking head wide open. Besides, his sister was smarter than that.

"She's not that dumb, ma. She knows better. And they only boys she's into are the ones all over her walls."

"I never thought you were that dumb either. Reckless, but not stupid." She turned to look at him. "I've tried to be a good parent. Teach you how to be a good man. And all you've done is disobey me and make me look like a fool."

_I must have missed all of those squishy, Hallmark moments we had._

He couldn't deny that she worked harder than most moms had to just to take care of him, and of Sara. He respected her for doing what she did, but her idea of "teaching him" wasn't giving him gentle words of wisdom. She usually did exactly what she was doing now - telling him how much he screwed things up after he'd done them.

"So does this mean you don't want me to come home?" he asked, tired of talking. "Because that's all I really want, mom."

She took a long pause before crossing the room and kissing him on the top of his head. Puck felt something warm, and wet, land on the top of his ear. "I'm sorry, Noah. You're my son, and I'd do anything for you, but I just…can't right now."

* * *

When he hit the bottom of the stairs, he saw Tina sitting on his bed, reading a book.

"What, uh…what's going on?" he said, dropping his keys on the table next to the bed.

"N-nothing. I haven't really seen you the last few d-days. So I came over, and Carol said it was okay to wait here. Guess she trusts us more, which is good."

"Just means I've been here too long," he said absently, sitting down at her feet.

Tina closed the book, laying it down next to his keys. "Carol mentioned something about you seeing your mom." She rearranged herself so that she was sitting next to him. "Figured it d-didn't go so great since she said that was a few hours ago."

"She said I couldn't come home. That's all."

"That sucks," she said.

"Is that all you can say?" he snapped, standing up.

"What do you want me to say, since anything I say anymore is wrong?"

"I just want you to say something more than 'that sucks.' I know it sucks, Tina. I don't need you to tell me."

"Fine." She stood up, grabbing her book and her jacket, and headed for the stairs.

"Shit. Wait…c'mon.."

Tina swung around, her face twisted up in anger. "NO! I came over here even though you've been a complete jerk lately. I'm doing the best I can but it's not enough for you. So I'm leaving."

"Like everyone else," he chimed, lacing in a nasty scoff at the end.

She charged back over to him, striking him hard in the chest with both hands. "That's n-not fair and you kn-know it! I'm here! I'm always…here." Her voice broke, a choked sob sticking at the back of her throat. "I was going to go to that appointment with you, and I was here when you got back. I take all those bitches I _hate _at school talking behind my back. And I have to tell my mom about a sex life I d-don't have every d-day, all because of you. So you d-don't ever wonder about how much I…"

Puck had felt like a jackass before, when he'd just _thought_ he was being one to her. Hearing her say it, though? That made it a fact. Especially when he realized what she'd been about to say and how few times he'd said it first, or even said it back. When she talked before she thought, it was to tell him she loved him, something is own mom couldn't even do. When he did it, it was to take everything out on her.

"I'm going home," Tina said, the clack of her heels moving away from him.

And she was gone. Like everyone else.

_But only because you made her that way._


	16. Daddy's Choice

**Note:** The first half of this chapter is entirely Puck/Quinn. I know it may not be the preference of some reader's, but trust me when I say it has a purpose.

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 16: Daddy's Choice

If there was any mom in the world who wanted to see his face less than his own mom, or Mrs. Cohen-Chang, it was Mrs. Fabray. When she opened the front door, and sneered when she him standing there, Puck could've sworn he saw fangs. Like that snarling dog creature that guarded the gates to hell.

And if he was being honest, the feeling was mutual. He wanted to tell her that her house was the last place he wanted to be as she waved him off towards the stairs. But Quinn had texted him while he was sitting in his car during independent study, saying she had something to tell him. He couldn't really ignore her since she probably wouldn't be talking to him unless it was about the baby. So there he was.

"You're mom said I could come up," Puck explained as stood in the doorway of Quinn's room, and watched her cross back and forth from her closet to her bed where a suitcase was open. "You, uh…going somewhere?"

"My parents have decided it would be best for me to stay with my aunt and uncle in Columbus until the baby is born. That way, they can take custody immediately."

"They afraid you'll chicken out or something?"

Quinn shrugged. "I don't know. They just tell me they think it's what's best for everyone."

_Except me._ "_Would_ you chicken out?"

Quinn stopped folding a large sweater, her body stiffening as she looked at him. "What do you mean?"

He took a few steps toward her. "I mean…do you want to keep it?"

"No."

Her green eyes were locked on him when she said it, which he figured was her way of making him believe her. And, strangely, he did. "I kind of do," he admitted.

She looked away from Puck, and started folding again. "You couldn't possibly take care of a child."

"Yeah but..I don't know if I can just dump my kid." He was about to say it was like his own life, all over again, but he figured Quinn didn't want to hear it. And, really, he didn't want to tell her. "Maybe I should move to Columbus, at least so I could be around."

"Shouldn't you talk to your girlfriend about that?" Quinn asked.

_Probably._

But asking Tina to tell him it would be okay if he ran off to Columbus to be close to his kid was just another thing he couldn't make her do. If he just went, maybe then she could move on with her life, and he wouldn't have to hurt her anymore.

_Maybe she already has, though._

He hadn't thought about it before, but it _had_ been more than a week since she'd called him and every time he saw her going into or leaving school, she walked the other way. For the first time, he felt like she couldn't care less about what he did. So maybe him going to Columbus wouldn't effect her at all.

"Can't. She kinda hates me right now."

Quinn stopped, and looked at him again."I doubt that. I mean, I don't know her, but she seems like she's been very supportive. Most girls wouldn't be."

"Yeah. I know. But I've been a real jerk to her and she doesn't want to talk to me."

The way Quinn was talking to him, all nice and sweet, he almost thought she might have even felt a little sympathy for him. "I'm sure she will."

"Sure," he mumbled. "You didn't get me over here to talk about my girlfriend, though."

She shook her head. "The main reason was to tell you I was going. But I also wanted to tell you that I talked to my aunt and uncle and they are willing to make this an open adoption. Which means…"

"I know what it means," Puck cut in, his tone defensive. "I'm not an idiot, you know."

Suddenly, Quinn's expression changed, her eyes narrowing to a glare. "I can see why your girlfriend sticks around," she sniped back, getting a dirty look shot in her direction. "Anyway, I talked to them and they said they don't have a problem with either of us being in the baby's life. They're willing to keep in touch, and send pictures and updates, and I think they'd even let you visit once or twice a year if they got to know you."

"Sounds great," Puck said, mixing sarcasm with a complete lack of enthusiasm. No matter how Quinn dressed it up, it still felt the same to him. His mom's words – _just like your father_ – pounded in his head.

"I know this isn't the easiest situation, and I'm sure you have your reasons for being against this adoption. But if you stopped for a minute and thought, instead of feeling sorry for yourself, you would see that this is best for the baby."

"Oh please! The only reason you want to do this is because you want your boyfriend and your body back!" he barked, trying not to raise his voice too much.

Quinn's hand landed hard on the side of his face. "Don't you _dare_ talk to me like that. Just because I don't want to keep the baby doesn't mean I haven't thought about it. I have. A lot. This is just as harder for me than you know. And not just for shallow reasons. I'm doing it so this child won't have to go without just because I'm struggling."

Puck rubbed his face. "What the hell? You didn't have to hit me. "

"You deserved it, and probably not just from me," Quinn snapped. "You talk about wanting to be a good father, yet you can't think of anyone but yourself, and how you feel. Why don't you try not being so selfish long enough to appreciate it when people are trying help you."

His mouth hung open. He wanted to argue back but his tongue wouldn't cooperate, a first for him.

"Now get out."

* * *

Puck was still pretty stunned the next morning as he sat in his car, in the school parking lot. He'd gotten over the slap – being bitch slapped was really only humiliating if other guys saw it.

What she'd said, though, stuck with him.

At first, he had thought she was just being hormonal since he heard some girls get that way when they're pregnant or whatever. And she already had a bit of rep for being an Ice Queen – the McKinley boys had told him that most people thought Quinn was kind of a bitch, and she wouldn't be so popular if she weren't head cheerleader – so her freak out was probably just how she was.

But after laying around that smelly basement, on his flat mattress, feeling angry, and missing a kid he didn't have yet and a girlfriend he probably didn't have any more, Puck started to think that maybe Quinn was right.

The reason Puck really hated his dad was because he could have taken care of his family, but he didn't want to. He just wanted to do stuff that made him happy, and he never really thought about how it affected anyone else, especially his kids. He was was everything Puck was trying not to be…but maybe the adoption _was_ the best way to take care of his kid. He didn't know Quinn's aunt and uncle but they didn't know him either and they were willing to let him in the baby's life. How bad could they really be? Maybe this kid would have a chance at a happier childhood than he did. And maybe it wasn't him giving up because of that.

He still wasn't 100% sold on all of it, or any of it, but he had realized that fighting against it was making him miserable.

And lonely.

He hadn't really felt that way since this whole baby thing started because he'd never been alone in any of it. He had known that all along but hadn't wanted to admit because he just wasn't use to having anyone who had his back a hundred percent. Not like Carol had, not like Burt had.

_Not like Tina has._

He scanned the parking lot for her.

For as much he'd had to apologize to her the last couple of months, he should have been used to it by now. Still, it was going to suck because he hated saying sorry to anyone, for anything. This time, though, she deserved it more than any other time. And he was going to mean it more. No matter how irritated, or pissed, or depressed, or whatever, he got from now on, he wasn't going to take it out on her like he had been.

Something else he had realized the night before was that being a man was more than just the stuff Carol had said, or being able to take care of a baby. He actually had to grow up and treat people better. Especially people he loved. And since she was pretty high up on his love list, he was starting with Tina.

It seemed like forever before she came into view, and he practically lept out of his car and over to her when he saw her walking towards her school.

"Hey, Tina," Puck called.

* * *

When she turned, snowflakes caught in her hair, and her eyelashes, and he didn't know how he could have ever have let their issues go on as long as he did. "What?" she said, her voice sounding a bit annoyed.

"Haven't talked in awhile, so I figured it was probably time to."

"I'm going to be late for my first class."

"Meet me during the usual time then?" He had missed spending independent study with her. Actually, he kind of missed making out during independent study with her but he wasn't getting ahead of himself. As much as he wanted to kiss her – which was a feeling that he'd been lacking over the last few weeks – he knew that would end in him getting slapped again.

"Alright," Tina said, sighing a bit. "Usual p-place."

* * *

The last time Tina had been in the auditorium with Puck was before all of the baby drama hit and it felt a little weird to be there again. Like somehow the auditorium was part of 'them before,' which meant that everything was different. Now, they had to be 'them during.' And there would never be a 'them after,' because being a father was permanent for Puck, even if the baby was going to be adopted.

In the time they'd spent apart, Tina had stopped letting the idea him being a father scare her. She had thought a lot about it and it was never him having a kid that was going to tear them apart. And it wasn't her not being able to handle it. It was always on him. Tina knew him well enough to know that when it came to family stuff, he just couldn't handle things, and change definitely wasn't his friend. Not that she would have handled being a young parent much better.

She knew she probably would have pushed people out like he had, and that she would have probably made everyone's life more difficult doing it. No matter how much she tried to remind herself of this, she still couldn't stop from feeling hurt by him and what he'd said.

_And I shouldn't. _

Tina knew she'd been way too easy on Puck when it came to that sort of thing, mostly because she hadn't wanted to say the wrong thing and make him feel like she had for the last few weeks. Puck definitely wasn't the worst guy ever – far from it, actually, much to his disappointment – but he was the type who needed to be pushed back when he started pushing. And since she hadn't, it had been pretty easy for her to assume the doormat position.

That was going to change, though. Tina had never demanded that Puck be anyone other than he who he was, but she wasn't about to let him treat her like she didn't matter. As much as she loved him, she loved herself more.

The thumping sound of Puck's boots on the stadium stairs broke her train of thought. "Here," Tina said, thrusting a sheet of paper at him when he came within arm's reach of the stage, and her.

He looked at it, a little confused. "Websites?"

"I found online support groups for teen p-parents who go with adoption. I figured since you can't talk to me without starting a fight, maybe you could talk to someone who's been through it."

He looked at the list again, then looked at her. "You didn't have to…"

"It's d-done. Let's n-not make a big thing of it." She looked down at her legs, which were dangling over the side the edge of the stage. Suddenly, red tights seemed like a very childish thing to wear.

Puck hoisted himself up onto the stage, and sat close enough to her that his thigh was touching hers. "This whole thing has been crazy. And I've been…"

"A complete jerk." It came out sounding more bitter than Tina wanted it to.

"Yeah, that," he continued. "Believe me, that's done. And I know I haven't said it but, I love you, babe. I love everything you've done for me. I shouldn't have said that thing about you not being there."

Tina looked at him, and saw a face, and a boy, she'd been missing. It was stuff like that that usually leveled her, but she had to be strong this time. Tough love all the way. "N-no, you shouldn't have."

"Lemme make it up to you," Puck offered, getting a surprised, 'really," look from Tina. He had to surpress a grin because he didn't want her to think he was being cocky about this – because he wasn't. "I know that we kind of missed v-day because I was an ass, and that's one of those things that's kind of important to girls. So this Saturday, I want to take you out. You don't have to do anything other than be ready when I pick you up."

"You're going to p-plan a d-date all by yourself?" Tina sounded skeptical.

"Probably gonna ask Carol for some help but it's be all me otherwise. So will you go out with me?"

Tina sat quietly, making the faces Puck had seen her make before when she was trying to make a decision. He'd always found it kind of cute, but appreciated it even more so now. "Let's see how the n-next couple of d-days go. Then I'll let you kn-know."

"Cool." This time he half grinned, half smiled because he couldn't really help it. She may not have said yes, but he was going to plan it like she did. Because that's what a good guy would do, so that's what he was going to do.

_For my girl._


	17. Date Night

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 17: Date Night

Her mother watched her get ready – which meant little more than running a comb through her hair – from the doorway of the bathroom, not even attempting to hide her disapproval. "Tina, I don't know _why_ on earth you are doing this," she finally said. "After all this boy has done, and how horribly he has treated you, why would you want to go out with him?"

Tina wanted to throw the brush at her, but simply set it down. "I d-don't have the time to explain it, mom. And I really d-don't want to fight. P-puck is going to be here any minute."

Not that he couldn't wait. Not that he wouldn't wait.

He had not been mad when she pushed the date back by a week the first time, then another week after that. Or, if he had been, he'd made a real effort not to let it show.

As much as Tina hated the idea that it was another girl who had knocked some sense into Puck – in a very literal way from what he'd told her – she couldn't complain about the effect that it'd had on him. He'd finally stopped acting like she, and everyone else for that matter, was against him and was back to acting like the Puck she'd always known. The secretly considerate one – he couldn't let it show too much because he "has a rep to maintain," and "can't have people doubting his badassness" – who left little surprises in her locker, and who never hesitated to take her hand when they were walking.

_The one I've missed._

Of course, he was still different because of what he was going through. Sometimes when they talked, which had been pretty much every day for the last two and a half weeks, she could still see him struggling with things. But now, instead of lashing out if he didn't like what she said, or if he just didn't want to talk about something, he would ask to change the subject, or ask her for space, which she willingly gave him when she knew he needed it.

Tina wasn't naïve enough to believe that they couldn't go back to the way it had been, but she was hopeful. She wanted them to get to a new place that was just as good. So everything going smoothly on this date? It was a pretty big deal.

"Tina," Mr. Cohen-Chang called from the bottom of the stairs. "Noah is here to pick you up."

"I'll be d-down in a minute," she shouted back, looking at herself one last time.

She picked up her bag, and, despite the expression on her mother's face, Tina kissed her on the cheek. "I'll be home by 12:00. Try n-not to worry much, okay?"

Mrs. Cohen-Change seemed genuinely surprised, but touched Tina's arm and replied, "Just be careful, sweetie."

_Better than nothing._

* * *

Puck hadn't said much to Tina while they had been in the foyer of her house. He had wanted to give her a peck on the cheek, because she looked amazing – and it'd been forever since he'd kissed her at all – but her dad was standing right there, and Puck was still on shaky ground with her parents. The guy had always been on his side but every dad has his limits when it came to guys treating his daughters like crap. Even the chill ones, like Mr. C. Puck knew that's how he'd be if he ever had a daughter – and he hoped that's how Quinn's uncle would be if the baby was a girl. The least Puck could do was show Mr. C that he did respect Tina by simply saying, "hey," and helping her with her coat. And the least he could do was show Mr. C he respected him, and Tina's mom, by saying he'd have her home early, which was a new one for him because he was usually getting her home with just enough time to get her foot in the door before the clock clicked past midnight.

"You look great," Puck said, as he turned off of her street.

It was a little like déjà vu. "I look like I always do," Tina replied.

He glanced over at her, a grin – the kind that she found completely irresistible – spread across his face. "Then you always look great."

Puck knew it was a totally lame thing to say, because what kind of asshole _actually_ said stuff like that to a girl, but it beat the hell out of the awkward silence. And he liked seeing the color of blush on her cheeks again, like it was now. It meant that he was getting to her.

He had been working on doing that for over two weeks, but as willing as she seemed to get things back on track with them, she had her guard up. It was almost like before they started dating. She would hold his hand, but she would let him put his arm around her. She would laugh, and smile, but it was like she was holding back whenever she did it.

It was like they'd gone from be kind of crazy about each other – or that's how he'd seen them anyway – to being strangers. Puck understood that she was gun shy about things. He was too, even if he didn't say so out loud. He'd never been into someone this way before, and he'd already messed things up royally once. What if he ended up doing the same thing again? Or what if she didn't give him that chance, and just never let him back in?

The first seemed more likely than the second, but it was all possible. Just like all the other stuff he thought of, and usually forgot about after a minute or too. Like in the beginning, anything could go wrong. Unlike then, though, he'd hit his second chance, and was about to be using it up. So he had to make it work.

He stopped the car after a short drive. Tina was looking out her window at the Lima Civics Center but there were hardly any other cars in the parking lot. When he came around, and opened her door for her, Tina's confused expression was not lost on Puck.

"We're n-not seeing a show or anything, are we? Because I'm not really d-dressed for that," Tina said. Community theater or not, she really didn't think jeans were appropriate play attire.

"Well, you are. But I'm pretty sure that who you're seeing isn't going to mind you."

"Are we even suppose to be here?" Tina asked as they crossed the parking lot, and approached the side door of the building. She clung to his arm with both hands, getting ready to pull him back.

"Relax." He pulled out his phone, and sent a quick text. A few minutes later, a guy in a security outfit came to the glass door, pulling out his keys and giving Tina a small smile as he ushered them into the building. Her nerves seemed to be getting the better of her, like they were doing something illegal, so she pressed herself hard against Puck's side. The contact, which he hadn't had in awhile, felt good, and he seized the opportunity to put his hand on the small of her back to lead her as they followed the guard up some stairs, down a short hallway, then through a set of large doors.

In front of Tina were rows of seats, and to her left a large stage.

"You have an hour, kids."

Puck stuck his hand out, and shook with the security guard, "Thanks man." He turned to Tina, who looked a little in awe of where she was, even though the theater itself wasn't that impressive. "Well, what do you think?"

"I'm n-not really…what are we d-doing here?" she asked him.

"Like I said, you're here to see a show." He left her side and took the stairs to the stage in twos. Disappearing behind the curtain for a moment, he re-emerged with his guitar and a stool in hand. "When I was trying to think of stuff to do with you, I remembered the play, and trying out, and how into me Artie'd said she were when I was singing. So I figured since the last time I sang like this on a stage you were pretty taken with me, I'd give a repeat performance."

She was…surprised that he'd put that much thought into it. "How did you…"

"Get this place?" He sat on the stool, tuning his guitar. "Lady who books shows here and stuff is one of Carol's best friends. Has been since Finn was a baby. When I told Carol about my idea, she thought of this place and talked to her friend. She laid it on thick about how I was in the doghouse and had come up with a pretty impressive date night surprise. I just needed some place to do it. Guess the lady is a real romantic or something because she said I could use this place, since there was nothing going on, for an hour or so."

Tina's reaction was written all over her face – this time, instead of blushing, her eyes had softened, and her mouth hung open in way that made Puck's heart kick up a beat – and she could barely hold herself up. So she just sat, hands folded over her knees, which he took as sign that she was ready for him to play.

It was so much like the first time she'd heard him sing, only without all the wondering. This time, as she watched his fingers manipulate the guitar strings, and listened as he hit the raspy lows, and mellowing high, she knew that this was him. This was the real Puck. Not the Puck who was all bluster, and BS, or the Puck who was about to be a father, or the one who was so afraid of losing everything because he'd already lost so much. Those were all just parts. But this – him sitting on that stage, playing his guitar – was all encompassing.

The music exposed the whole of him.

And he was letting her see it. This time, she was the only one.

Puck was trying to keep his eyes locked on Tina, instead of letting them fall shut and losing himself in the music. He wanted to watch her while he sang Edelwiess, and the songs he knew she loved even if she'd never told him, and the songs he'd written just for her. For tonight.

_Was that a tear in her eye?_

He had always hated seeing her cry. Then again, she was usually crying because of some jackass thing that he or someone else did. Now, it was because…well, he didn't really know why. He just hoped she was kind of touched. Or that she felt…loved.

Because that's how he felt.

He couldn't say enough how much he loved her. Even if he could, the words probably wouldn't be enough either. That's why he sang because it wasn't about the words. Just the feeling.

When the music finally stopped, Tina couldn't move. Something was vibrating under her skin, making everything in and outside of her feel unsteady.

"You alright?" Puck asked, after coming off the stage and kneeling in front of her.

She dragged her thumb under each of her eyes, he hands shaking slightly. "Yeah, I'm okay. I just…I like when you sing, that's all."

He reached up, cradling her face in his hands. "Anytime."

When she smiled then, he couldn't help leaning up and kissing her. He shuttered at the touch of her lips, and the way she responded – crushing her mouth to his, making the kiss forceful, heated.

_Well worth the wait._

"You're amazing," Puck mumbled, his tongue gliding over her bottom lip.

"Stop talking, and kiss me again." It sounded like a whine, but a very demanding one.

Puck chuckled. "We should get out of here and get to the rest of the date. After that, these lips are all yours, babe."

She huffed a little, her mouth forming a small pout – she really need to stop that, or Puck's will power was going to be shot – and said, "It better be good." She was only half serious, but, really, what could be better than kissing him?

"If I promise it is, would you take my word for it?" Puck put his hand for her.

Without any hesitation, Tina took it and held on tight.

_Yes, I would._


	18. Revenge Served Cold

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 18: Revenge Served Cold

He'd never had an "if it's going good, why not fuck it up" attitude. And he really wasn't trying to sabotage himself. If anything, he was trying to make good on an unspoken promise.

For Puck, the date with Tina had been a kind of homerun. Not the kind that he was use to – the "no pants" kind – but the kind that he would gladly take. In fact, he kind of liked it better, even if that made him a total puss. They were getting to the good place he wanted them to be in. The good place where she was saying she loved him again without having to think about it. He'd even scored some brownie points with her dad when he walked her to the door at 11:30 that night. Mr. C had patted his shoulder, and thanked him for getting her home safe.

Yup. It was all getting better for Puck.

But there was something that he hadn't really thought about in a few months, and that's why he hadn't really dealt with it. And that something was Azimio, and Maureen.

Being back in good with Tina reminded him of how those two had schemed to hurt him by hurting her. He couldn't blame everything on them – he _was_ the one who'd gotten Quinn pregnant after all – but they had set out to do damage. Puck didn't care that they'd come after him. They could bring all they wanted to, because he could take it. But no one was going to hurt his girl.

Azimio had been easy. All Puck'd had to do was employ a little help from the most unlikely partner in crime, Mercedes, since she'd gone on some "parentally appointed" dates with Azimio the year before. He got her to agree to spread the truth around – that Z was a cheap date, and a bad kisser – and it was enough to turn pretty much any girl that Azimio considered dating off to him. His social life had been mercilessly slaughtered, and Puck made no secret – at least not to his once friend – that he had put the plan in motion and if Z ever screwed with him, or Tina, again, he'd take any chance Z had left with the ladies and burn it to the ground.

Maureen was a different story though.

Whatever he did, it couldn't be too sleazy – Tina wouldn't have liked for him to do anything to Maureen that made her feel as bad as she'd made Tina feel. Even though the girl tormented her, Tina would never sink to her level. And she would expect that he wouldn't either. Puck loved and hated that about hers.

Since toning revenge down wasn't really his game, he tapped Sam, Artie, and Mike to come up with something that wouldn't kill or maim Maureen's rep, but just embarrass her…a lot. They were nicer than he was, but still had deviant streaks a mile long. The direction they ended up pointing him in, he decided when they pitched the idea, was perfect. The only thing he had to worry about was getting Finn on board, since he was a huge part of getting back at Maureen.

As dopey as he could be, Finn was a loyal friend. He also happened to be Maureen's dream come true, and the only guy she ever really wanted to date on a serious level. Not just for popularity or any of that. She actually seemed to like Finn. Puck knew he was going soft when he felt a little bad that he would be taking that away from someone. Then he remembered Tina sitting on the bench in front of school the day Maureen told her about the baby, trails of black staining her face, and any sympathy he had disappeared.

The plan was simple: have Finn shoot Maureen down in a very public setting, thus crushing her ego and her dreams of ever being the queen bee who gets the quarterback.

And the joint school assembly that was going to build up to Winter Festival – the student council put it together every year to help raise money for the Junior and Senior proms – was the perfect place since rumor had it that Maureen was going to ask Finn to the winter festival once the assembly was dismissed. All her friends would be around, and a bunch of other people would be too.

Much to Puck's surprise, Finn had been down with the plan from the get go. As much as he didn't like being a dick to anyone, Finn liked Tina and the two of them were even getting to be friends, sometimes hanging out when Tina was waiting for Puck to get home from work. He wanted to help her, and Puck, get back at Maureen for what she'd done. Plus, there was a girl at McKinley that Finn kind of liked – Santana, the latina cheerleader Puck had gotten with earlier in the year but left the details out when he told Finn he knew her – and he really wanted to get Maureen out of his hair.

The day of the assembly, Finn and Puck were sitting across the aisle of the bleachers from Tina. Maureen was on the floor with the dance team, doing some routine that Puck thought kind of sucked. She kept looking up at Finn. It made Puck a little nauseated watching her basically eye fuck Finn but he sucked it up because, it would be worth it in the end.

He glanced over at Tina, who mouthed "hi," and smiled.

_Hope she doesn't hate me._

Puck hadn't told Tina about the plan beforehand, and he'd made everyone agree to keep their mouths shut. He knew it was shady, and he hated lying to her. But she probably would have tried to stop him all together and he just wasn't going to do that. He couldn't just let Maureen skate.

Once the assembly was over, Puck was at Finn's side, and Tina was at his, when they climbed off the bleachers. When Puck saw Maureen waiting near the doorway with a group of her friends, he had to suppress a smirk.

"Hey Finn," she said, practically jumping in his path. She made a point of ignoring Puck, who had his arm around Tina, and Tina herself.

"Oh, hey Maureen." Finn sounded a little nervous, a sign that worried Puck.

"How did you like the dance? I choreographed it."

Finn shoved his hands in his pockets. "Cool. Look, I can't really talk. I have a…thing at home. But I'll see you around."

"Wait," she said, pulling his elbow back as he tried to pass her. "I wanted to know if you had a date to the Winter Festival."

Finn looked at Puck, a "deer in the headlights" expression on his face. Puck gave him a slight, but encouraging, nod, almost as if to say, 'do it man.'

"No, but I'm…"

"Great. You can pick me up around noon on Saturday, then."

"I can't, Maureen."

It was like a switch flipped, and all the sweet and nice was gone from Maureen's face, and voice. "What do you mean you can't?"

"I mean, I can't go out with you. End of story."

Puck snorted for effect, making everyone turn to look at him. Actually, it would've been more accurate to say Maureen was glaring like him. "Good for you, bro. No sloppy seconds." It was uncalled for, Puck he knew it. But he was trying to back Finn, keeping him in the game…and he wanted to stick it to Maureen a bit.

"Look, Finn, if this is about me and Puck in the past…"

"No!" Finn snapped at her, a little louder than he needed to. "It has nothing to do with him. It has to do with the fact that you suck as a person."

Her eyes went wide, like she was stunned. "E-Excuse me?"

"You think you're hot and, sure, you kind of are. But there are plenty of hot girls who aren't so mean. To be honest, you being like that kind of trumps the hotness. In fact, it makes you kind of…ugly."

"…what?" Puck could barely here the word, and he was pretty sure no one had ever heard Maureen be that quiet in her life.

"You're an ugly person, Maureen. Maybe if you weren't, I could've liked you. But I don't. It's not gonna happen so stop throwing yourself at me." Finn paused. "Because it's kind of pathetic."

Puck had suggested Finn throw that last bit in when they went over what Finn could say. Strangely, Finn had pulled off being a complete douche on that final note and it almost made Puck feel like he had ruined one of the nice guys. But he knew Finn would go back to being his super sweet, borderline embarrassing self the next time he talked to the girl he actually liked.

Puck also knew that he would owe Finn for this big time.

Finn pushed passed the group, and disappeared around into the hallways of St. Maria's. Puck followed suit, not wanting to get trapped in an awkward situation.

"What…was that?" Tina asked, as she glanced back at Maureen, standing alone in the gym. Her own friends couldn't flee fast enough, like getting dumped was catching or something.

"That was Maureen O'Connor getting what she deserved," Puck offered in a nonchalant voice.

Tina stopped moving, which pulled Puck to a stop as well. "Wait. D-did you p-plan that? For Finn to d-dump her like that in front of everyone?"

He couldn't really tell if she was pissed or not. She looked like she could be, which is what he had been afraid of, but she could go the other direction once she heard his explanation. "Yeah, kind of. I heard she was going to ask him to the festival after assembly and convinced him that being a little harsher than necessary was what she deserved." The look on Tina's face was still unreadable. "Look, I know getting back at her for hurting you is a shitty thing to do. What can I say? I am the kind of guy who does shitty things to people who hurt people I care about. Hate me for it if you want, but that won't change it. And of all the things I could've done, this wasn't the worst."

Tina knew that was true. If he wanted to, he likely could have dug up some compromising pictures of Maureen – she knew they existed, because girls talked, and all it'd take was a little of his smooth talking – or he could have started spreading rumors, or got his friends to do it, and a lot of nasty stuff could have been said. And stuff like that wouldn't have just hurt her. It would have hurt her family, and the people who cared about her. Just like the news getting out about Quinn's pregnancy had hurt his family.

Tina didn't think it being a lesser offense on his part made it okay. But she couldn't judge because, she really couldn't say she'd have done anything different. Or that she hadn't wanted to get revenge on Maureen. "I want to be mad at you for p-putting this all together," she finally said, arms crossed over her chest.

"But?" Puck knew it was coming.

"But Maureen is kind of a bully. And even though what you d-did wasn't great, maybe she n-needed a taste of her own medicine."

"Believe me, she did."

"Yeah."

He slid his arm around her waist. "So you're not mad at me?"

"N-not mad, really. I just kn-know you're a better guy than this." She reached for his hand. "So d-don't d-do anything like this again, alright?"

"Hey, any time someone crosses my girl, I'm gonna defend her honor."

She raised an eyebrow. "Was there a time warp I missed? Are we in medieval England?"

"I see how you are. I stand up for you and you give me shit."

"I love that you stand up for me," she said, pulling on the collar of his shirt, opening her mouth a bit as she kissed him. "But I d-don't n-need you to, especially n-not like that."

"If that's what you want." It was a lie, because he'd do it again in a heartbeat. But when she was kissing him like that, he'd pretty much say anything.

"It is. But that's n-not all I want."

The way she was smirking at him, he knew that she really wasn't mad. And that Maureen was the last thing on her mind.

"Why are we still standing here then?"


	19. Getting to Know You

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 19: Getting to Know You

_Fucking cockblocking cellphone._

Puck had been on top of Tina, her nails digging into his bare back as his hand kneaded her left breast, when the words, "Call from…Quinn…" sounded off from the nightstand. He felt Tina's body go rigid instantly, and he knew that the mood was lost.

"Fuck." He rolled onto his back, raking his fingers over his head in pure frustration. "I should probably take that," he said, begrudgingly, as the deafening sound of Quinn's name came again and again.

"Yeah," Tina said, moving off the bed, and to the closet, pulling the door behind her.

_Just fucking great._

The first time in forever since he'd touched her – he was so hard up that he really couldn't even complain that it was just her boobs – and he'd ruined it by not turning the damn phone off. If he could kick his own ass for such a rookie move, he would have.

"Yo," he said, which was apparently Quinn's cue to skip the greeting and launch into...whatever it was she was talking about. Puck really couldn't be bothered to pay attention, especially since the closet door was open just enough for him to see Tina changing from his position on the bed. She was completely naked from the waist up, and her body was…fucking immaculate. Seeing her like that now made him wonder how he'd managed to keep his hands off – well, for the most part any way – for so long.

"…down so they can get to know you."

Quinn's voice was like a blast of ice water. "What?" Puck asked.

"Are you even _listening_?"

They didn't talk much, just for a few minutes here and there if any baby stuff came up. He thought it was pretty cool of her to keep him in the loop. Especially after he'd been kind of ass to her. Still, every time they did talk, he realized how lucky he was to not be raising a kid with her since he was pretty sure that, in her book, he was a complete moron.

"Sorry, you caught me at a…" He turned his head from the closet, because Tina was dressed now and coming back into her room. "…bad time.

"I was saying that my aunt and uncle want you to come for a visit, so they can get to know you before the baby is born."

"Uhm…can I call you back and let you know?"

"It's really yes or no, Puck. You either want to do this, or you don't. It's up to you."

_Yup, totally lucky. _

But saying no to her was like saying no to his kid, who he'd probably never get to see if he didn't meet these people. And it was just a visit.

"Sure, whatever."

"They'd like to do it as soon as possible, and since my aunt manages a hotel here, and gets a discount, they'd be willing to put you up there for a night or two, no questions asked."

Puck looked over at Tina, who was sitting at her desk, holding her phone like she was about to text someone but not actually pushing any keys.

"Well, I'm not working this weekend, so I guess I could do it then," he offered.

"Great. I'll tell my aunt and text you the details." Then he heard a dial tone.

Before he could say anything, or sit up even, Tina was throwing his shirt, which had landed somewhere on the floor earlier, at him. "Here," she snapped. "Let's get d-downstairs before my mom gets home and finds you up here."

He got the shirt on with a speed he normally reserved for taking clothes off, then practically chased her down the stairs and into the living room. "C'mon, don't be pissed at me. It's not like I planned for her to call while we were making out."

"I'm n-not mad."

Puck knew this was a "girl lie," and his choices were to play into it, and let her be all dramatic about something stupid like this, or to just ignore it, even if it would probably piss her off more. "Her aunt and uncle just want me to come down for a visit. I guess they want proof that I'm not a complete loser or whatever. Probably going to Columbus this weekend."

"Okay," she said simply, looking around the room, even though the remote was right in front of her.

"Hey." He reached for her, wrapping both arms tightly around her waist, and rested his chin on her shoulder. "This is pretty important to me, alright? This is my kid. So I'm asking you not to be pissed."

He never played the 'feelings for my kid' card, since using his kid like that seemed manipulative and completely shitty. Especially when he knew the baby itself wasn't why Tina was annoyed. But it really _did_ mean a lot to him to go, and he really _didn't_ want her to hate him for it.

"You've been really good about all this baby and Quinn stuff." He kissed the curve of her neck, nipping lightly as his mouth reached the bottom of ear. "And I promise, the next time I'm trying to get in your pants, I'll turn the phone off."

He felt her face twitch, which meant a small smile had gotten past her defenses as she elbowed him. "You're such a jerk."

"Yeah, but you love it." He smirked as he flopped down on the sofa, pulling her down so she was sitting between his legs, her back resting against him.

Since her parents had started letting them be alone together in the house, which had been almost immediately after their date, this was how they spent most of their afternoons. They'd make-out in her room until right before her mom came home, then go down to the living room to watch enough TV that it seemed like that's all they'd been doing. Puck knew that neither of her parents believed for a second that all they were doing was watching TV, but he also figured that if they thought they were having sex, they wouldn't have let them be alone at all.

Whatever. All he cared about was that he was back in.

"You should come to Columbus with me," he said as she flipped aimlessly through the channels.

"Yeah right," was her disinterested response.

His face screwed up into a frown, even though she couldn't see him. "I'm serious."

Tina turned her head, only revealing half of her face to Puck. He didn't like what he saw either. "I'm sure when they invited you, I wasn't really p-part of the d-deal. They p-probably d-don't even kn-know about me."

"And if I say they don't matter, I just want you there for, like, support?"

He was filling up his cheap shot, low blow quota for the day because he knew she'd have a hard time saying "no." He'd have felt worse about it if he could think about something other than going back to an empty hotel room after spending a day with the people who were going to be raising his kid. And how he wouldn't have to be alone as long as he could feel her body warm against his while he slept – like that night he first told her he loved her.

"You kn-know my p-parents will n-never go for it."

"Forget about them too. Just say you'd go with me."

This time, Tina turned completely around, her eyes locked on his. It still freaked him out when she looked at him like this – like he could see everything she was feeling and it was all very...deep. Like even after all the stuff he put her through, she could somehow still love him. Or like she loved him more because they'd gotten through it. It always messed with his head because that's how he felt about her, but he could see a lot of guys could feeling that way about her because she was easy to love. But she was the only girl who could feel it about him because he was a mess.

"I would go with you p-pretty much anywhere." She pulled on the collar of his shirt, like she wanted to kiss him, but didn't. "I just d-don't think it'll happen."

His hands landed at the small of her back, and he pulled her against him as a kind of silent "thanks."

_I'm going to make this happen._

* * *

Tina wasn't really sure how he'd gotten his way on this one. Sure, Puck was charming and he had a knack for convincing anyone of pretty much anything. But this? Tina just couldn't believe it.

She hadn't been there for the conversation he'd obviously had with her parents. She hadn't even known he was going to have one with them since when she said they weren't going to be down with it, he seemed to accept it. He had, though, and now no one would tell her what was said. When she'd asked Puck, she got a smirk, which had been more annoying than sexy at the time, and the explanation of, "I'm just that good, babe." Her parents weren't any better. All either of them had said was that they talked to him, and that it was okay if she went to Columbus, but to make sure she called them. Frequently. When she tried to push the issue, her mom had been the one to say, "Just be glad that we trust you both, dear."

And she was as she looked out the passenger side window of Puck's car, watching the blur of trees and an occasional farm. Not just happy that they trusted them – Puck especially since her mother saying so, even if it had been to give Tina a hasty brush off, meant something – but that she got to be alone with Puck. Even though it wasn't a vacation for either of them, she liked the idea of being able to be with her boyfriend however she wanted to, without having to worry about who saw.

_However I want..._

She couldn't believe she was thinking about sex when he was about to have one of those days that could change his life. It had been weighing on her mind a lot though and knowing what she wanted was harder than it seemed. She knew what she was prepared for – she'd been on birth control for awhile before she ever met Puck because her mother thought it would be a good idea "just in case." And thanks to a chat with a very blunt counselor at the family planning center, Tina knew what she was ready for.

No one could tell her what to want though. Not even Puck, who just happened to be one of those boyfriend who didn't pressure her into anything, and always told her it was fine if she wasn't ready, no matter how painful it was for him. At least if he was a jerk about it, she could make some kind of decision.

_Did I just wish for an asshole boyfriend?_

Tina sighed, sinking back into her seat.

"You alright?" Puck asked, squeezing her hand that laid lazily under his.

"I should be asking you that," Tina said, almost as if she were scolding herself. "You p-probably have a lot going on inside your head right now."

"I'm cool, babe. Just want to get there."

Tina knew there was more to it than that. Puck had been quiet the whole drive, and they were almost there according to directions she'd gotten from Google Maps. He wasn't even that into singing along to the radio all that much, which he always loved doing, and he'd only spoken a few times to ask her if she was warm enough and if she wanted to stop and get something to eat. She wasn't going to press the issue, though. If she'd learned anything in the last few months, it was to let Puck deal with his feelings about this situation in his own way. It definitely wasn't easy, especially when all she wanted to do was help and him not talking made her feel shut out. But she always tried to remember that it wasn't about her.

Just like today wasn't about her.

When they finally pulled up to the house, Tina heard a gulp that Puck probably hadn't intended her to. She looked over at him, and his eyes were a little wide. "Nice place," was all he could manage to say.

He was right. It was nice, but it wasn't a mansion or anything. And it wasn't like he'd never seen nice houses before. Some people even said that her house was really nice, and he'd seen that one a million times. But his child wasn't going to be living in her house, and seeing this house, looking like it was straight out of one of those design shows on cable – with fashionable trees out surrounding the stone walkway, and color coordinated siding and shutters – was obviously intimidating for him.

"A big house d-doesn't mean anything," she said, meeting his eyes.

"Right. Just that they're better than me, and that they're probably loaded and can make it so I can't see my kid."

Tina laid her hand on his thigh and leaned over the center console to kiss him on the cheek. "It's going to be fine. I mean, they want you here. That's a good thing."

"And if they think I'm a jerk-off?"

This time, she turned his head and kissed his mouth, slowly and sweetly. "They won't. N-now stop making excuses and go before you're late."

"Doing that's not going to help me be on time."

She shook her head, trying to reassure him with her smile, though he didn't seem to need it now. He walked up the walk with the same swagger he always had, though it was less obvious to anyone who didn't know him. And by the looks of it, he gave a firm shake of the hand of the tall man who opened the door.

Watching this, Tina imagined this is what a nervous mother felt like on her child's first day of school. She had faith that he could do this – he'd gotten her to Columbus, so he could do pretty much anything – but she couldn't help but feeling anxious for him.

Tina climbed over the console of his car, sliding herself behind the wheel. Puck had agreed that she should take his car while he did his own thing. There was no point in her sitting around, waiting for him, he'd said. She hadn't realized what a good idea getting away from that house would be until now.

Suddenly, a rapping came on the window and Tina almost jumped as she was trying to buckle her seatbelt. A pretty blond, whose soft pink baby doll top wasn't hiding her protruding stomach, was looking in at her. Tina felt her insides twist, and she had to swallow back the burning feeling of heaving on an empty stomach. She suddenly wished that she'd said "yes" to food earlier.

Tina rolled down the window, but didn't say anything. Having a face-to-face with Quinn really wasn't what she'd expected out of today.

"Can I get in?" There was barely a nod from Tina, but Quinn pulled the door open. "I thought we could have a late breakfast, or something."

Before she knew it, Tina was sitting across from Quinn in a booth at a family restaurant. It was all a little much for Tina, and she didn't like that Quinn hadn't even told her why they were doing this. She couldn't believe that she and Tina were going to become BFF's over brunch – she didn't seem that dumb – and they weren't going to have a heart-to-heart about the only thing they had in common – Puck – so what was the point, really?

Tina sipped on her coffee then pretended to look at the menu gripped tightly in her hands.

"You probably hate me. I wouldn't blame you for it," Quinn finally said, as she stared down at her menu. It was almost like she was having a normal conversation with someone else. Like Tina hating her was no big deal.

_I don't hate you. I just don't want to talk to you._

"Why would I hate you?" Tina asked, trying to match Quinn's nonchalant tone. "You d-didn't d-do anything to me."

"I'm having a baby and it's your boyfriend's. I'm sure it's caused problems."

If it had been okay to punch pregnant girls, Tina might have considered breaking Quinn's nose. How dare she assume she had the power to do anything to Tina's relationship? The baby, sure, and Puck because of the situation. But it didn't have anything to do with Quinn herself.

_But that's not completely true._

Every time Puck mentioned her, hearing Quinn's name was like nails on a chalkboard. Tina could never get out of her head that Quinn was the one who scared him straight. And even now, when she was suppose to look like a beached whale, Quinn was undeniably beautiful, and she practically glowed – which seemed strange to Tina since she'd been told that Quinn never wanted this baby or to be a young mother. Just because Tina wasn't threatened by her didn't mean she wasn't unhappy that someone else got even a smidge of attention from their boyfriend. And she didn't think it was unreasonable for her to be a little jealous. Who wouldn't be jealous, really?

"Any…" Tina consciously choose her words, since she didn't want to stutter in front of Quinn anymore than she had to. "…issues I've had with my boyfriend have been because of him and me."

"You can drop the act, you know. He's not around and you don't have to be nice about anything."

When Tina's head snapped up, she couldn't conceal the glare pointed in Quinn's direction. "You seem to think you kn-know me a lot better than you d-do."

Quinn's face was unmoved. In fact, Tina thought she looked serene, which only irritated her more. "You're trying to be a good girlfriend. I get that. But it must get old, always saying what you think he wants to hear."

"I say whatever I want and so d-does he."

"I doubt that."

Tina's menu landed hard on the table. "Okay, what do you want here? You want me to say I hate you, I will even if it's n-not really true. You want me to say I'm lovesick over him and would do anything, even if _that's_ n-not true either." Tina's chest was heaving, and it felt like her lungs were tight. The words felt like lead in her mouth. "I may n-not be a hardcore bitch about it like you are, but he gets honesty from me." Now she was on her feet, pulling money from her bag and throwing on the table. "Here, take a fucking cab home, but I'm done being p-part of whatever your game is, Quinn."

"I'd hate me," Quinn said to Tina's back. "And I'd want someone to talk to if I were you. I just thought…"

"I have friends to talk to," Tina snapped, cutting her off.

_But maybe she doesn't. _

Tina turned back then, looking down at a girl who had once had everything – or at least that's what it seemed like based on everything she had heard. Then she got knocked up and sent away, like she was some dirty little secret. Maybe her boyfriend wasn't as good to her as Tina tried to be to Puck. Maybe he'd basically ditched her as soon as he knew the baby wasn't his. And maybe she didn't have a best friend like Mercedes, or friends like Artie, Mike, and Sam, who would listen to her and always support her even if they were friends with her boyfriend too.

It was possible that Quinn was alone in all of this. Alone and angry. With no one to talk to. Or, at least, she couldn't say what she really felt. Maybe she was feeling everything she'd said Tina should feel. And she just needed a way to get it out.

_Fuck._

Two minutes ago, she'd wanted to mangle this girl's face. Now, she was going to be the shoulder she cried on? That was the last thing Tina wanted. But she truly believed what she'd said – Quinn really hadn't done anything to her. Quinn didn't really do anything at all. She'd just made a stupid mistake by not listening in health class, or assuming that it couldn't happen to her. And she was already being punished when she really didn't deserve to be.

As much as she didn't want to be the bigger person, Tina also didn't want to make it worse.

Reluctantly, she slid back into the booth. "So, d-did you ever find out what you were having?"

"I thought you were…"

"If you want to talk, then you can talk? Alright?"

She likely wasn't meant to, but Tina caught the smallest smile when Quinn said, "Alright," and closed her menu like she had decided what she wanted.


	20. What Talking Gets You

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 20: What Talking Gets You

It was almost too good. Too easy.

Puck was no expert on people, but Quinn's Aunt Clarissa and Uncle Brad seemed like quality.

Easy-going, smart, understanding.

The best way he could describe them was that they were the exact opposite of Quinn's parents, who'd cared more about what their neighbors said than they did about their daughter. Just from spending half a day with them, he had realized these people would never send Sophia – they'd told him Quinn was having a girl and that's what they'd thought about naming her – away if something like what happened to Quinn happened to her someday.

They were psyched about this adoption, and raising a kid. One of the first things they had done after they'd sat around the dining room table and eating the nice little lunch that Clarissa made was show him the nursery, explaining how it could easily be transformed into a bedroom as Sophia grew up. The closet was full of little dresses that even Puck had to admit were cute. They even talked about sending her to private school when she got older, but weren't those crazy "applying to pre-school before the baby is born" kind of parents. They just wanted him to know that they thinking about the future and Puck liked that because he was too.

When he'd mentioned to them he had been saving money to start a college fund for the baby because he felt like it was a way he could be involved, they had both seemed impressed that he had taken the initiative to research different options. And they seemed really glad when he'd asked their opinion about it.

If he was being honest, he was just glad they seemed to like him, and that they seemed to mean it when they said they were going to let him be in their daugther's life.

_Their daughter. _

When Puck first heard Brad say it, his blood boiled a little. Just because he knew the baby was going to be their's didn't mean he had one hundred percent accepted that she wasn't going to be his. But that's what this all meant. That he was going to be a visitor in his kid's life. Maybe someday she'd call him "Uncle Puck," but it would never be "daddy." That was the worst part of everything.

Still, knowing that she would be with two people who he knew would be good to her made him feel a little better. And he couldn't hate the idea that he might still get to be part of her life, part of her family.

His emotions were kind of all over the place about things, and he hadn't really expected that. He'd been so worried about them being okay with him he'd never thought about whether or not he'd be okay in general.

All he wanted now, as he sat on his bed in the hotel – Clarissa had brought him over and gotten him all checked in – was to see Tina so he could forget about all of it. He was also kind of interested in hearing this craziness about her and Quinn having breakfast together.

Reading it in the text had nearly knocked him out of his chair. He didn't know how it happened, though he should've suspected something when he didn't see Quinn around much the first hour or so he was at her aunt and uncle's house. All he knew was that Tina was no fan of Quinn's, and even though that cat fight would have been kind of hot, the two of them having breakfast probably wasn't the best idea.

When the door finally opened, and he saw Tina, he had to force himself to wait patiently for her to come over and sit on the bed across from his.

"Why are their two beds?" Tina asked, looking between them.

"I asked for two," he said quickly, wanting to get to the real issue. "So what's this with you and Quinn having a little date?"

Tina shook her head. "We ate, she talked, I listened. She d-doesn't have a boyfriend to talk to anymore, and she d-doesn't have a lot of friends here or back home. And her p-parents are n-never around when she calls."

"So you guys are like BFFs now or something?"

Tina shrugged, losing her coat in the process. She got up and hung it, along with her bag, on the hooks by the door. "It was a onetime thing. For good karma. That's all."

She played it off like it was no big deal but Puck knew that everything Quinn rubbed Tina the wrong way. For her to sit for a few hours and let this girl pour her heart out to her? Well, Puck couldn't help but be in awe. Sure, he knew what an awesome girl he had but it was really easy for him to forget how good she could be to other people, since she was always doing it. Things like this, though, always reminded him. And that only made him want her more.

As she went to sit back down, he grabbed for her hip and pulled her down so she was straddling him. "You're pretty great, you know." His lips were on hers before she could give an answer, which was fine with him since it'd been more of a statement than a question.

"Stop trying to d-distract me," she said, as she pulled away from his kiss. "How d-did things go with her aunt and uncle?"

He groaned – half because he'd much rather fool around than talk about his day, and half because the slight shift she of her body had created a friction that he didn't mind at all. "Good," he pressed his lips against the curve of her jaw, and worked his way up. "They seem cool. She'll be in good hands."

Tina stopped him again. "I'm serious about talking."

"And I'm serious about a little third base action," he countered, running his hand up the inside of her thigh, trailing his thumb in small circles as he did so. He smirked when her body vibrated under his touch.

"Don't be an ass," she said, pushing his hand away – no matter how good it felt. When his face fell, she stroked his cheek and kissed him in apology. "Sorry. I was just…n-never mind. We d-don't have to talk if you're n-not up for it."

"I'm just tired of talking about it. I mean, I'm trying to deal with the fact that she's gonna be raised by people who are good but still aren't me. She's gonna call some other guy 'dad.' " He sucked in a deep breath, trying to push all the bad feelings down, and rubbed his eyes hard with his fists. "It still hurts like hell, but I don't want to feel the way I did in the beginning. And I don't want to do the stuff I did then, like mess things up with you."

"That…pretty much says it all," Tina said quietly, like she hadn't expected such a powerful reaction. Sadness, depression. Maybe she'd even expected him to be a little pissed. But tears? Puck could see in her face that she wasn't ready for that.

"Can we just relax, maybe order a pizza?" he asked, his arms wrapping around her waist, his fingers skimming the small of her back.

Tina reached back, folded her fingers through his, and titled her head up. She looked a little terrified, but when she covered his mouth with hers, and swiped her tongue across his bottom lip, she didn't seem all that scared. And she didn't seem scared when she was unbuttoning his shirt - the one nice one he owned that wasn't part of a school uniform – or when she was dropping her sweater on the floor by his feet.

Actually, if he was being honest, the only one who seemed kind of scared was him.

Puck was never nervous about this – this being sex, which he only realized when she reached for his belt buckle. Why should he be? Women didn't call him a sex god for nothing. He had the whole sex thing on lockdown. But this…wasn't just that.

He'd like girls he'd slept with before, some of them enough to do it a few times before things ended. And her V-card wasn't his first. In fact, thinking about all the first times he'd taken almost made him feel sleazy. Hers, though, was the first one that ever really mattered. She only got to have one and that stuff was important to girls. Like she'd always remember it, or something, and he didn't want it to be something she felt bad about when she did.

And he really didn't want her to be doing this she felt bad for him about this baby stuff.

"Are you sure about this? We don't have to if you're not really ready," he said, his thumbs pressed against her hips, almost as if he was trying to hold her back.

"D-do you want to?" she asked, suddenly looking very self-conscious.

The corner of his mouth pulled up, as his eyebrow did the opposite, in a 'you're kidding me, right,' sort of expression. "Babe, I'm a guy. I _always_ want to." He leaned in, brushing his nose against hers, and leaving a sweet kiss on her forehead. "And I really want to with you. Like, a lot. But I don't want to if you feel like you have to because I had a rough day or something."

"That's n-not why I want to."

"Why now, then?" It was the first time he'd ever asked why.

"Because we can. N-no one's going to walk in or anything. And because…" She looked down, but Puck still saw the red splash across her cheeks. "…I've kind of wanted to for a long time. Like the other day, at my house. And that day in the auditorium when you were singing to me. Or right after the play, when I got n-naked in your bed, p-pretty much threw myself at you like a d-desperate idiot. Even when I was mad at you, I thought about it. So it's got nothing to do with today, and what happened. I really just want to."

It was weird for him to know she had thought about it so much, and kind of frustrating that she'd kept it to herself. "You weren't an idiot. But why didn't you say something?"

" I just…" Her voice barely made a sound.

"What?" His hands ran over her hips, and up her sides. When he reached her breast, he stroked the skin left exposed by her camisole with the backs of his fingers.

"What if..I wasn't good. Or we weren't good together."

_No one's good the first time. _

And he almost said it, but stopped himself because he knew it would just make her feel worse. So would telling her he had sucked at it in the beginning to. But talking about his first time with someone else who he barely remembered? Not cool.

"How could you not be good?" Puck kissed Tina just below her ear. "You're sexy as hell, and I've made it pretty clear how much I love your body."

"You're just…saying that." A swallowed a gasp caught as Puck sucked lightly on the same spot he had just kissed.

"I'm not." Pulling back, he took her face in both of his hands. "And I could go on and on about how beautiful you are, and how amazing, and all that other mushy stuff I'm suppose to say right now. But you already know that. And you know I'm kind of stupid in love with you." His voice lowered to a raspy whisper. "But if you're not ready, you're not ready."

Tina was quiet as she pulled her camisole over her head and climbed over Puck, onto the bed itself. She pressed her lips to his shoulder, then his neck, before lying against the pillows.

She reached out to put her hand on his. "C'mere."

* * *

It was dark outside, and the wind was making the window bang against its frame. There were bursts of thunder, but the only rumbling Puck was paying any attention to was the one in his stomach.

He'd never gotten the pizza – he wasn't really complaining, since what he got instead was much better – but he couldn't really sleep, and he was getting kind of hungry.

Tina was curled up against his chest, sleeping lightly. He glimpsed down now and then, since he thought straight up staring at her while she slept was super creepy, kind of hoping she would stay that way for awhile because…he didn't really know what to say when she woke up.

Talking had never really been part of his post sex ritual, so he didn't really know how to do it. But he knew this situation definitely called for it. He didn't want her to think he didn't care because he didn't say anything, that was for sure. And maybe since she'd never done it before either, he wouldn't sound like such a sappy shmuck when she did wake up.

He'd taken it slow with her – again not his usual, since he liked his sex quick and dirty – and had let her take the lead in any way she could. He could feel her hesitate at times but she never seemed uncertain about them doing it. In fact, every time her eyes were on him, he could see it: she wanted him. And she wanted to be doing what she was _with_ him. It was a good feeling, because most chicks just kind of did it with him because, well, really he had a reputation. It wasn't so much him as a person as it was him being good, and easy.

With Tina, it was all about him – at least that's how it had felt - and for him, it was all about her.

He probably wouldn't say it out loud, because it sounded cliché or whatever, but the fact that he felt anything at all was what made it good. Tina wasn't blowing his mind with any crazy, porn star moves like a lot of the chicks he'd been with, but that wasn't really the point. The point was he actually liked being close to her – a lot – and it felt good to feel connected in some way, even if he wasn't really sure what way that was.

Sure, it'd been a lot of work. But not work he really minded. If work was always that way, he'd probably be more willing to do it.

A blast of lightening crashed through the sky – Puck didn't know why it was storming since it was still technically winter – and it was loud enough to jolt Tina away.

"Relax, babe," he said, wrapping his arm around her, stroking the skin of her shoulder with his thumb. "Just some lightening."

Tina rolled over onto her back, stretching her arms out. "Is it late?" she asked, groping the table between the beds for her phone, not realizing it was in her bag.

"Only, like, 10," Puck offered.

"Good, we can still order pizza. I'm starving."

Puck laughed, forgetting that he was suppose to be nervous. "Pretty sure that was my idea earlier. Then you started pulling my clothes off."

Tina stopped messing with her phone, and looked over at him from where she was sitting, wrapped in the sheet. "I kind of d-did, d-didn't I?"

"No worries. I'm a stud. It happens." When Tina tried to swat at him, he caught her arm and pulled her half on top of him. "Seriously, what's goin' on in your head? That all happened pretty fast."

Tina's left eyebrow shot up. "N-now you want to talk?"

"Hey, I've never really done this before…the talking after part I mean. But I just want to make sure everything's cool with you."

Tina grinned as she grabbed his hands and pinned his arms over his head as she bit his neck playfully. "Very cool."

"I'm serious about talking," Puck mumbled as Tina worked her way to his mouth, doing that amazing thing she always did with her tongue as he parted his lips for her.

"And I'm serious about some repeat, out of the p-park, home run action."

_How am I suppose to say no when she's all sexy and cute and teasing me like this?_

Puck sat up, easing her to a halt. "Look, I just want..or, like, I need to know if it was okay. That you're okay. Like I didn't hurt you or do something dumb, right?"

Tina's head tilted, some of her hair falling over her face, and her eyes softened. "I'm okay. More than okay, really. I mean, I was n-nervous but you made me feel…n-not so clumsy. And you d-definitely weren't d-dumb." She leaned in, pressing a smile against his cheek. "I'm really glad you were right."

"About?"

"Us being good together."

"Pretty sure I said _you'd_ be good," Puck said, keeping his hands tightly wound in hers so he wouldn't touch any other part of her. "And I was totally right about that."

Tina pulled her top lip inward, her bottom teeth holding it in place, which meant she was trying to cover a giddy smile. "Stop it."

"Whatever. You love it."

"N-not as much as I love bacon and p-pineapple on my p-pizza.," Tina said, giving Puck her best puppy dog eyes.

The two things Puck hated together on pizza.

But she had made him feel a million times better and he was kind of stupid for her. "Fine."

"Now aren't you glad we talked?"

Tina couldn't jump away from Puck's grasp fast enough and, before she knew it, he had pinned to the mattress and was tickling her mercilessly. He knew what it would lead to, and that was kind of the point.

Talking?

_Totally overrated._


	21. The Convoluted Puzzle of Puckermans

**Note: Finally! A new chapter. I didn't actually proof it that well, because I'm tired, but I wanted to put it up for, again, the people who've hung tight. I promise that a month won't go by between updates again. :) Enjoy**

* * *

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 21: The Convoluted Puzzle of Puckermans

"Hi, Mrs. P-puckerman."

Tina had stood on the porch for 5 minutes, her legs freezing as a cold, spring night wind whipped hard against her, before she'd found the courage to knock. Puck's mom's was the last place on earth she'd expected to be, but it had been the shortest walk from her now dead car.

"Tina?" Shira Puckerman said, looking a little surprised, then a little embarrassed as she pushed the hair in her face back with one hand. "What are you doing here? I mean…I'm sorry, dear, it's been a long day."

"I d-don't want to bother you if you're busy…"

"No, no. Come in."

She ushered Tina into the kitchen, offering her a drink, and food. Tina declined her each time, saying she was fine. Puck had once told her there were few things more insulting to a Jewish mother, or grandmother, than to say no to food when offered but Tina wasn't hungry, and she wasn't about to have his mother wait on her.

Finally, after pouring herself a cup of tea, Shira sat down across from Tina at the kitchen table. "I suppose you're here to talk about Noah." It sounded like an accusation, mixed with a question. And Tina heard something else, too. Hope, maybe, or desperation? It was almost like Shira _wanted_ her to bring Puck up.

"Actually, I was d-driving from my friend's house to Finn's and my car started smoking then died up the block from here. When I called for a tow truck, the guy said it was going to take awhile. I d-didn't want to sit in the car alone, in the d-dark," Tina said, twiddling her thumbs a bit, her jumping nerves showing.

"Doesn't Noah work at a car shop? Couldn't you have called him?"

"I d-did call him. But he was already out, towing some friend of Burt's who was kind of far out." Tina looked up from her hands. "If you want, I can just go wait with the car."

The last thing Tina expected was for Shira to reach across the table, and pat her on the hand. "I'm glad you are here. You can tell me what's been going on with my son."

Tina wanted to suggest that she should call Puck, and that he should be the one to tell her what he'd been doing. Or, better, she should let him come home so she would know all this stuff firsthand. But Tina didn't know how to say it without sounding disrespectful, which was the last thing she wanted to do. She liked Shira, and she knew that, deep down, they wanted the same things for Puck. It was just taking more time for Shira to heal from the pain, and shock, of the pregnancy than it had taken Tina. Which was something Tina could understand, so she recounted everything that had happened in the last few months, giving Shira the information she seemed to crave. Tina even told her the things that weren't so great, like she and Puck fighting and the almost break-up, so Shira could see that just because he made the mistakes didn't mean that he couldn't come back from them, and that he was really trying to clean up his act.

The way that Shira was looking back at her – eyes big and a little bleary – and hanging onto every word gave Tina a little bit of hope. Maybe she couldn't convince Shira of anything, but she could soften her to the idea that maybe she needed her son there. That maybe she should let her boy come home.

It wasn't until she got a little carried away, and flew head first into talking about the weekend he – she made the mistake of saying "they" – had spent meeting Quinn's aunt and uncle, that Tina felt unsure of herself.

Shira looked at her thoughtfully. This look was probably what Puck had called the "Jewish mom's know everything" look, because having this woman's eyes on her like this made Tina feel like all her secrets were exposed. "Are you sleeping with him?"

It wasn't the question Tina had expected, but it didn't rattle her quite so much as it probably should have. She didn't blink, or blush, even though she'd have rather done anything than answer the question. But Tina had been told that Shira was a woman who respected honesty. So that's what she was going to get. "I have. N-not for very long, though."

What came next was yet another question Tina hadn't expected. "Are you doing it to keep him?"

The words made Tina a little angry, mostly because she wasn't sure if Shira was calling her stupid, or calling Puck a whore. Either way, it was kind of insulting. But Tina maintained her composure. "It wouldn't be happening if I were just trying to keep him. And I d-don't think he'd have waited this long or tried as hard as he d-did just to get laid. So he's p-probably n-not going run of anytime soon."

It felt like a tense moment between them as Shira kept her hard gaze on Tina, and Tina refused to look away. Eventually, though, Shira, again, reached across the table for Tina. Only this time, she took Tina's hands in both of hers. "Please, for the love of god, don't let him be as stupid as he was the last time. Don't let what happened to that other girl happen to you. You're much too smart to be in that situation, and you have too many other things you could do than raise a baby at seventeen." Her voice cracked a bit on the last words. "And I don't want Noah to have to go through what he is now, having to give up another child."

"We're careful," Tina said, losing a bit of her confidence when her eyes flicked from the hands on hers, to Shira's expression.

Shira gave Tina a firm nod. "Good." Her hand then lifted to Tina's cheek, and it took everything in Tina not to flinch, or jump back. "I told you once that you were good for my Noah. And I still believe that."

Before Tina could respond, her phone rang. It was Puck, telling her that he was on the way to get her and her car. She wanted to tell him where she was, but she didn't want to put anyone in an awkward position. Shira hadn't actually said it was okay for Puck to come there, and Tina didn't want to get Puck's hopes up just because she'd been at his mom's. She said a few quick words to him then hung up.

When she stood, Shira reached out, patting her on the shoulder. "Take care, dear. And…tell Noah that if he'd like to come to Temple with me on Saturday, he should be here by the time we normally leave."

Tina couldn't help but wrap her arms around Shira in a tight hug. "I will."

* * *

Tina looked hot in his T-shirt.

Well, Puck thought she always looked hot but he kind of liked her best when she was lying next to him, wearing his clothes. He knew she shouldn't have been – Carole and Burt would have a stroke if they found him and Tina having sex in the basement. But they'd gone on one of these weird overnight dates Kurt liked to set up for them, and he really couldn't help it.

He was a 17-year old guy, and he'd waited 6 months for a girl that he loved to be ready. He deserved this. Besides, she was all over him – this had become his go-to excuse, "Tina made me do it," – and he couldn't resist her. What was he suppose to do?

His hand landed on her hip, pulling her so she was practically on top of him. "You're fucking sexy, you know that?"

The smile that spread across her face only proved his statement, and he leaned up to tease her lips, nipping at the bottom one, a hand skirting the bottom of his shirt, ending up on the small of her back. She squirmed under his touch. "D-don't tease," she murmured, not being able to break her mouth from his.

Puck rolled them both over, setting himself easily between Tina's legs, trailing tiny kisses from her ear to her collarbone. "Don't pretend like you don't love it." He wasn't being cocky, really. No more than usual, anyway. By the sounds she was making, he knew the tease was half the fun for her.

"Wait," she said, breathlessly, as he'd begun to lift the t-shirt over her head.

Puck looked up at Tina, propping himself up on his elbows so they could be eye level. "Something wrong?"

"N-no," she assured him, though Puck was utterly confused by her pulling herself out from under him, into a sitting position. "I just have something to tell you."

The way she was looking at him made Puck's stomach flutter a bit. Maybe it was a kneejerk reaction to any woman saying 'we need to talk,' but he felt uneasy as he straightened up and sat with his legs wrapped loosely around her hips. "Alright. What's up."

She was playing with the ends of her hair, which was one of her tells. She was as nervous about what she was going to say as he was. "When I was waiting for you to get me earlier, I went to see your mom."

Puck knew he was just staring at her, and he could tell it was freaking her out a little. Like maybe she thought she'd done something wrong by going over there. Or by telling him about it. But why would she bring it up if it was totally bad?

"What did she say," he finally asked.

Tina let out a little breath, which Puck figured was her being relieved that he didn't flip out. "Short version? She wants you to go to Temple with her on Saturday. She said to be there at the normal time if you wanted to go."

_Wow. This is my in._

Even though he really didn't get the whole 'temple thing,' since his mom had never been big on the actual going part of their religion, there wasn't a lot of stuff that his mom held above being Jewish. She never really made a secret of that. He didn't know what the hell she meant by the "normal time," since they went to Temple _maybe_ once a month when he lived there. But he wasn't going to question it. If she was willing to let him sit with her and his sister at service, then he might just be a few steps away from getting back into the house.

He was pretty excited about this, but he was going to try and play it cool with Tina for now. "She say anything else?" he asked, keeping his face neutral.

She had moved from playing with her hair to picking at the hem of the shirt. "She asked if we were sleeping together." Tina looked up from her lap at him. "And I told her yes. Then she asked if we were being safe, and I said yes. She just said she d-didn't want either of us to have to go through any of this baby stuff again."

He wanted to be irritated at his mom for basically interrogating his girlfriend like she was some kind of sex criminal or something, but it was kind of nice to know that maybe she was worrying about him a little bit. About how he was feeling about this stuff. Sure, she hadn't really helped him deal with any of it, but this whole adoption thing had made him realize something. He sure didn't want his kid to resent him some day for not being there for him, so maybe he should give his mom a break because all this time she might have been feeling as bad as he did about Sophia. Maybe what she was doing was no different than all the wrong moves he'd made in the last few months. He was lucky enough to be forgiven for those, why shouldn't he let her slide a bit? She was his mom after all.

Leaning forward, and pushing Tina so she was laying against his pillows, Puck kissed her lightly. "She had no right to ask you any of that stuff. Let me make it up to you."

Tina turned her head a bit, trying to avoid his kiss, which he found annoying. "So you're n-not mad at me for telling her everything that's been going on? Because I d-didn't like p-plan it that way, ya know. I really d-didn't want to sit in the car by myself in the dark. And your house was aclose."

Pushing Tina's hair off back from her face, Puck looked down at her with a grin on his face. "Not even thinking about it anymore, babe. I mean, I love you for doing it and I'm really glad that my ma is giving me a chance to maybe fix stuff. But we're both pretty much naked right now and that is kind of more important."

Tina giggled, which drove Puck a little crazy. "I'll work on my timing."

"Mmm, you do that," he said, as he pushed down the sweat pants he'd been wearing, then eased the shirt over Tina's head so he could continue moving his mouth down her body.


	22. Reconciliation

**Catholic School Girl**

Chapter 22: Reconciliation

Puck kept pulling at his tie. It was fucking annoying and he didn't know why Tina'd made him wear one. He had asked her to tag along, because his mom clearly liked her more than she liked him. Hell, Tina was the only reason he was sitting on the sofa in his own house right now – which felt weird because it'd been so long since he had. That, and he thought about the first time he kissed Tina on this couch, then about how she'd arched her hips, and practically begged him to make her come when he was between her legs just last night.

_Stop it. _

The last thing he needed was to be sporting wood when his mom came down the stairs to take him to her place of worship.

When she did come down, after what felt like forever, she wasn't in her 'Temple clothes.' She had on jeans and an Ohio State sweatshirt. Puck was really fucking confused by this. His mother didn't even acknowledge it though. She just waved him into the kitchen and had him sit down at the kitchen table as she moved around, pulling out what looked like leftovers and warming them up for him. As the microwave whirred behind her, she looked down at him. It wasn't her usual "what the hell have you done now," look, which Puck pretty much knew by heart at this point. No, this looked like she was sizing him up, trying to make her mind up about something. It was freaking him out, and when the microwave dinged, he nearly shot up out of his chair.

He stared down at the plate after she sat it in front of him, almost like he was waiting for her to tell him it was okay to eat. After a minute of her saying nothing, he took a bite and chewed as quietly as he could. He didn't take his eyes off her because he knew better. She may not have been very big, but his mom was tough. Like a fucking marine core drill sergeant. If he looked away, even for a second, a shot would fly straight to the side of his head, and the next thing he'd see was the kitchen ceiling when he woke up.

"Well?" she finally said, setting her folded hands in front of her on the table.

Puck's cheeks had been filled with the food he'd been shoveling in – he loved Carole, but no one cooked like his mom – when he stopped chewing. He had to force everything down in a swallow because talking with his mouth full? Yeah, shot to the head city. "Uhm…sorry?" He didn't know what else to say to her, or what better to say.

Her eyes stayed on him as she shifted in her chair. "You realize that if it wasn't for that girlfriend of yours that you wouldn't be sitting here, right?" He nodded. Though, now that he was sitting across from her, he had a feeling that maybe it wasn't all Tina. If his mom didn't want him there at all, he wouldn't have been there. Tina may have gotten the ball rolling, but his mom was the one following through. "She told me that you're trying to change, and be better. And, despite the fact that you still can't keep it in your pants, she tells me that you're not taking the same stupid chances as you did before."

"Trying not to." Looking at her right now was kind of hard, because as badass as he pretended to be most of the time, this was his mom. They had their issues but she got him. He couldn't pull any shit with her. But the way to get her to treat him like a man was to act like one, instead of mumbling while staring down at his plate. "I love her, but I don't want to fuc…screw up her life the way I did someone else's. Or mine. So we're careful every time." There was really no point in talking around it. She knew they were having sex, and now she knew, straight from his mouth, that they were being safe about it. Like it or not, Puck knew she had at least a little respect for him owning up to it.

"And the baby?"

Puck really hoped she wasn't going to ask about that, especially since Tina had already told her all that stuff. His mom was stubborn, and the two of them talking about Sophia could easily turn into a fight. But what he could he do, other than tell the truth? "She's being adopted. And they're good people who can take care of her better than I could. I'll still get to be in her life. Just…I won't be her dad."

He saw his mom's mouth twitch a little, and there was something in her eyes. It was almost like…she felt a little bad for him. That shocked the hell out of him, but when she scooted her chair closer, and raised her hand to stroke the side of his head, he almost fell out of his chair. "Oh, my boy."

Having his mom touch him that way made Puck feel like the little boy he'd tried to avoid being before, and he leaned his head more heavily on her hand. So much for being a man, he thought. "It hurts, ma. It hurts like hell. Every time I think it's okay, I think about not being there and it starts to suck all over again."

She pulled his head against her chest then, and Puck wrapped around her middle awkwardly. "Sometimes, Noah, the choices we make for our children hurt us. But we always tell ourselves that they will be better for it. That's what I've been telling myself these last few months, after the anger and embarrassment wore off. I wanted you to come home every single day because, even though you're a dumbass sometimes, you're still my baby." She sighed, and Puck could have sworn he heard her swallow hard, like she could cry just talking about this. "I don't know, though, that I could have done for you what you've done for yourself." She pulled his face up so he was looking at her. "I'm very proud of you, Noah. I want you to know that. You've done more in these last few months to become the kind of man I want you to be than I've ever seen you do. And you did that one your own."

Puck smiled at her a little. "I had a lot of help, ma."

His mother leaned back again, regaining that stern, mom like compsure that she normally had, and took a sip from her coffee. "Yes. I like that Tina. She keeps you in line. Just don't screw it up, you got it."

Puck would have taken her words as harsh if she hadn't winked at him a little over the cup. "Alright, ma." He looked down at his plate, then back at her. "So…two questions. Can I come home and can I have more food?"

"I guess so," she said, raising an eyebrow at the second question. "And, are your legs broken? You know how to use the microwave. Warm more up yourself. I'm not you're maid."

He smiled.

_Good to be home. _

* * *

Tina heard an urgent knocking on her front door, and figured it could only be one person. Looking at the clock, though, she was positive that services weren't over this early so how could it be him unless… She bit the inside of her mouth, worried that something had gone terribly wrong. Kicking off the couch, she practically ran to the front door, almost slipping and wiping out on the hardwood.

Puck looked around the foyer, then up the stairs, his eyes darting around a little like a rabid chipmunk's after she let him in. "Are your parents home?"

Tina blinked at him, trying to figure out why he was acting so manic. "They're at some weekend retreat thing with my dad's boss and his wife and some other couples. I told you that when we talked before."

"Awesome," Puck said, sliding his coat off quickly, throwing it over the banister. Grabbing her up, his mouth landed hard on hers and he lifted her off the floor a little, practically carrying her to the couch. "You're fucking amazing, And I need to be with you like right now." He reached for his belt, practically yanking it from his pants.

"Hold on a second." She put her hands over his, stopping him from undressing himself. "Maybe we should try talking before you strip in my living room."

Puck frowned a little, then shrugged and flopped down on the sofa. Tina came down more easily, curling one leg under her and looking at him intently. She really had no expectations. By the way he was acting right now, things could've gone either way, and she felt like the worst girlfriend ever for not being able to tell the difference. But instead of stressing herself out wondering, she reached for his hand and held it in both of hers. "So, how'd going to Temple go?"

"We never actually got there," he said, turning more towards her. He removed his hand from hers, which confused her, until she felt his arm slipping around her waist. "We just stayed at home instead and talked about some stuff. Mostly the stuff you guys did but I think she wanted to hear it from me, ya know? And after that, she said I could come home."

Tina lost herself for a split second, throwing her arms around Puck's neck excitedly. When his reaction wasn't immediate – his arms coming around her slowly, almost like he was trying to catch up to her mentally – she became a little more shy and eased away just enough so that she could look at him. The crooked grin on his face made her blush. "That's great. Are you moving back as soon as possible?"

He nodded. "Figure I won't give mom a chance to change her mind. That and I don't think she'll watch me like a hawk quite so much as Burt and Carol. So we can actually lay on my bed together without anyone flipping their shit."

Shifting a little in his arms, Tina tried to hide the discomfort she was feeling. The idea of doing anything with him in his mom's house didn't really sit right with her. At least not right now. "That's really all you think about, isn't it?" she teased, trying to lighten her own mood, since he really didn't need it. He was pretty light as it was.

"I'm a guy." He put his lips to work, first on her jaw , moving his way up to the hollow of her ear, sucking lightly until she leaned back and pulled him on top of her. "Guess I wasn't the only one thinking about it."

Tina wanted to tell him that she thought about it more than he could ever imagine – at night when she was alone, when she was in class, pretty much anytime and anywhere – but she was too busy. Parting her lips, he made her moan quietly when he touched his tongue to hers.

Warm and breathless – damn him for always doing this to her – she teased the hair at the nape of his neck, so he would focus on what she was saying. "Are you happy? I mean with going home? Like really?" It was probably a silly question to him since it's what he'd seemed to want for month. At least that's how she felt after she asked it.

The way he was looking at her though…it made her feel a lot less silly. His expression was strangely soft and a curve of his lip that she'd never seen before. This smile was new. "Couldn't be happier, babe. I get to go home and not sleep in someone's smelly basement anymore. I get to drive my sister to school, and be forced into listening to Justin Beiber again. I get my mom cooking me dinner and nagging me all the same time." He reached up, the rough feel of his fingers against her chin causing a prickling sensation to slowly creep up her spine. "So, yeah. I'm happy. And you did that, which means on top of all of that stuff, I have an amazing girlfriend too." His lips were soft against hers. "Think things are going to be alright from now on."

Tina's arms wrapped around his neck, pulling him closer as hand moved down her body, settling on her hip with his thumb caressing the skin there. She sighed a little.

_Me too. _

* * *

**Author's Note:**First off, I want to semi-apologize for the very unceremonious ending. I just really didn't see this going anywhere else, as all the major plot points were resolved, and that this reconciliation would be a good place to end. All that being said, I want to thank everyone who hung in with this story over the last 9 months. This story really was my baby, being my first ever Glee fic and the longest one that I've ever did, so I'm glad that people enjoyed it. And I hope that people will keep doing so as new people stumble upon it.


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